


Too Far Gone

by Highgreenbunny



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, Explicit Sexual Content, Fluff and Angst, Human!Aster, I'm Bad At Tagging, M/M, Past Relationship(s), Rape Aftermath, Rape Recovery, Slow Build, Sorry Not Sorry, Troubled Past, cat!Toothless, human!Jack Frost
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-17
Updated: 2016-06-17
Packaged: 2018-07-15 14:32:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 83,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7226311
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Highgreenbunny/pseuds/Highgreenbunny
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hiccup has a chance for a somewhat normal life when he earns a full scholarship to Thaddeus Burgess Academy. He begins anew with therapy, a gym membership, and his new personal trainer. But is he too far gone for a chance at happiness?</p>
<p> Ugh… that is an awful summary.<br/>….fuck :/</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

_‘2:30 a.m...’_

Hiccup stood at the sloped end of the near empty parking lot, save a lone car parked off to the side which was most likely belonged to an employee, lifting his Mughal green eyes from his glowing cell phone screen to the cement building before him as he slipped the device back into the safety of his jean pocket. He didn’t understand why it was so hard for him to just go inside, the autumn breeze carried quite a chill as it graced the lone young man and compelled him to wrap his ajar olive jacket and the green duffle he carted with him closer to his thin frame.

 

“Come on, Hiccup,” he uttered to himself, “you have been making up excuses all week to not come here. Now, no one is here… so go.”

 

And with that the chestnut haired lad drug his feet up the sloped parking lot to the building. It was bigger than he had remembered from when he first arrived a few days ago. The old, but well maintained, building loomed over him as he looked up at the sign with buzzing florescent bulbs laminating the barbell logo of the gym: Guardian Fitness & Health Center.

 

Hiccup was ashamed to be ashamed for having difficulty entering the gym. Maybe it was his poor body image, maybe it was his social anxiety, but whatever the reason, his therapist planted the idea into his head the week prior. She figured that maybe coming here would help eliminate these problems and toning up would make him feel somewhat self-assured instead of hiding in his small one bedroom apartment with his cat or in his college library.

 

At first he seemed to be on board with the concept and was actually looking forward to it. However, when he first stepped inside to register, his chest tightened from nervousness and after gazing around to the various patrons, he immediately started to regret walking in the door. He felt himself backing away from the line he was standing in and began walking, slowly, backwards to the entrance.

 

What made him stop in his tracks was when he realized that the line that was in front of him had disappeared and he heard, “ _G’day, mate. What can I do for you today,”_ asked a man with a thick Australian accent, who looked to be in his early thirties with salt and pepper hair and a large black tribal tattoo on his left upper arm.

 

At that point, Hiccup found it would be way too awkward to just turn around and walk out the door when he was there for a reason. But alas, he ended up registering that day and was given a speedy walk through of the fitness center by the Australian man. As the man carted him around the center that he had learned that the gym was open 24 hours, which gave Hiccup a sigh of relief. All his life he had been looked down at because of his appearance and he didn’t want his gym experience to be the same. Coming in at a late hour, when most people are usually asleep, he would have the gym to himself and also wouldn’t have to worry about a shortage of equipment. It seemed like it would work perfectly since all of his classes were in the afternoon. The tour ended when the two of them had returned to the front desk and Hiccup was given a packet of papers which were filled with various information about the center—sanitation of equipment, lockers, showers, as well as a service for personal training and aerobics that they offered.

 

However, even after registering that day, Hiccup began to figure up any excuse he could to avoid the place. It wasn’t like the people there seemed mean or judgmental. On the contrary, they actually seemed really nice and willing to help out as much as they could. His best friend, Astrid, whom which he spoke daily on the phone with, called him out on this and gave him quite the tongue lashing. He knew that her words held some merit and that was probably why he didn’t fuss back as much. Well, now he decided to keep his word and since he had already paid for this month’s membership, he figured that it might as well not go to waste.

 

The auburn haired lad took a glance through the giant plate glass windows once more to see that the building was completely empty of patrons and he felt his nervousness subside a little and paced along the walk way to enter the building. Once inside, he could hear techno music playing. He was thankful it wasn’t overbearing and made the floors vibrate. It could be easily drowned out with a pair of ear buds.

 

Hiccup made his way over to the front desk to sign in. The guy, wearing a bright blue hoodie, behind the counter was obviously not paying attention to him as he approached. After all, he was sitting in a desk chair and had his back turned to Hiccup. His legs were propped up on the opposite counter and he had what looked like a comic book resting in his raised lap. At this angle, Hiccup was able to take notice of the man’s rather odd hair. His dark brown hair was close cropped from ear to ear to the base of his neck, but the crown, which had been dyed an impressive snowy white, was longer and stood in unruly angles on the top of his head. Before long, Hiccup found he probably should say something to get his attention instead of gawking at him like a weirdo.

 

He cleared his throat hoping he could catch the stranger’s attention, but no avail. He tried again, louder this time, but still nothing. Hiccup could see that he wasn’t wearing any headphones or ear buds and he was getting a bit testy from the fact that this guy was ignoring him, probably thinking if he ignored him he would go away. The brunette sighed in frustration and lulled his head over his shoulders before getting closer to the counter.

 

“Uhh, excuse me,” he called, only to be ignored once more. ‘ _Seriously? What is with this guy?’_  “Hey!” still nothing.

 

Hiccup pursed his lips as his eyebrows became closely knitted together and sat his bag down beside the counter and leaned over, “Hey! Dude, why are you ignor— wait…”  ‘ _Is he… is he asleep?’_

It was then when Hiccup had leaned over as far as he could, without his feet lifting from the ground, that he could hear soft snores coming from the guy. He was indeed asleep and by what Hiccup could see, he was a pretty deep sleeper at that. He rolled his eyes and leaned over farther, his feet off the ground, and shook the man’s shoulder lightly, “Hey, wake up.”

 

What he wasn’t expecting was the when the odd haired man to suddenly leap from his chair, almost falling, sending the comic book that rested in his lap somewhere across the counter as he sprung to his full height, “WHOA! WHAT!? WHO ARE YOU??!!” he practically yelled at Hiccup as he quickly slid back to the ground on the opposite side to avoid getting hit by flailing arms.

 

Before Hiccup could say anything, the man suddenly calmed as he looked around, taking in his surroundings, “Ooh yeah… I’m at work,” he said to himself with a soft chuckle, but loud enough for Hiccup to hear, before turning his attention to the brunette across from him that was retrieving his duffle from the floor, “Sorry about that. Long week,” he stated shortly, then yawned. He turned his attention to the computer that was at the end of the counter.

 

Hiccup felt the corners of his mouth curling upwards and a small wry chuckle escaped as he shook his head, “Is this a habit of yours?” he asked, gesturing his thin freckled arm to him. It was something that not only Hiccup, but all the people of Berk were accustomed to—aside from being loud— they all were very active when it came to talking with their hands. Hiccup was no different. He adopted the active gesturing himself, and after a while he gave up on trying to break the habit.

 

“Is what a habit?” the man asked back, glancing passed the glowing screen before him, obviously he wasn’t fully awake.

 

Hiccup cocked an eyebrow, “Um, falling asleep on the job?”

 

A goofy smirk formed on the other’s face and his shoulders relaxed a bit, “Well, I would be lying if I said it wasn’t.”

 

“Aren’t you worried somebody would come in here and, I don’t know…, steal stuff?” the brunette asked, only to have the guy give him a blank stare before he burst out laughing, taking him aback, “What’s so funny?”

 

The man pointed to the scanner, indicating that he was ready for Hiccup to scan his membership card, “Well, I tell ya what, if someone can come in here and get one of those machines out that door without either waking me or me noticing them doing it, they can keep it. Because if they are talented enough to do that, than they are probably some type of super assassin.”

 

The brunette couldn’t help but laugh at the man’s odd statement, even though he did have a good point. He pulled his membership card from his wallet and scanned it at the indicated scanner on the counter and replacing it back in said wallet, “Well, I suppose I can’t argue with that logic,” he stated lightly.

 

The man laughed as he saw the freckled man backing away from the counter, “Well, have a good work-out, Mr. Haddock,” he chirped, obviously reading Hiccup’s name off the screen from where he just scanned his card, but still earned a half-hearted wave from the smaller man. He left Hiccup to head to the locker room while he began to search for his comic that had gone missing-in-action.

 

Hiccup entered the men’s locker, but not before stealing one more glimpse of the man that was looking around the floor behind the counter. A small grin remained on his features until he disappeared behind the door. He couldn’t help, but think that the man was intriguing. He had unusual hair, yes, but he was very handsome too. He hated admitting another man was handsome, but this was one of those circumstances that _any_ man—gay, straight, whatever— would take a second look or may stare a little longer than intended. It wasn’t a crime. In fact he was pretty sure the stranger would be flattered to hear from another man he was quite good looking… at least telling himself that would help him sleep at night.

 

Once inside he found him an empty locker— which since the place was empty it wasn’t too hard of a task—and dressed into his work-out clothes which was a white sleeveless shirt, hunter’s green basketball shorts, and a pair of worn sneakers, before throwing his duffle into the locker, locking the lock, and making his way out of the locker room.

 

There was a large range of machines and equipment to choose from. There were also areas that were sectioned off for certain types of exercises: stretching, abs, heavy weights, etc. And of course, the large main room contained stair steppers, treadmills, ellipticals, exercise bikes, and various cardio machines. Hiccup looked over the machines trying to figure out how he would even use them. He climbed onto a treadmill and pressed the QUICK START button, only to have the machine’s belt to take off on high speed making him almost fall off. He quickly slapped the STOP button and hopped off to go see what his other options were, or so he told himself.

 

He found himself in the stretching area of the building, his eyes scanning over the non-electronic equipment. _‘This is a nightmare,’_ he thought to himself, _‘I don’t even know where to begin. The descriptions on the machines are so vague, if they have any at all. I don’t need to get myself killed.’_ Hiccup let out a long exasperated sigh and left the stretching area and headed to the free weights and tried picking up a few only to have his hopes of actually finding something to start out with crushed.

 

The first one he had retrieved from the rack was a forty-five pound weight that he almost immediately dropped onto his foot, but thankfully missed him by an inch or two. He thanks the Gods that he was the only one in the gym at that point, save the man running the counter. This was humiliating; he couldn’t even pick up forty-five pounds. Why did he ever volunteer to do this? Oh yeah, that’s right, he wanted to make some changes and this was a good way to start.

 

After he reminded himself of this he decided to give it another try. He sat with the weights for a while, trying out numerous ones, before soon abandoning them. Not wanting his trip to be all for naught, he continued trying different equipment and eventually settled on the stair climber. The controls of these seemed pretty basic. He pulled himself onto the machine and hit the START button and he felt the stairs start to move at a snail’s pace.

 

“Well, this isn’t too bad,” he said to himself with a crooked smile on his features. He held onto the rails as he walked to make sure he didn’t fall out the thing. The pace remained slow at first, but once he was used to it he sped it up a little bit. Hiccup’s mind began to wander, soon tuning out the music that echoed through the gym. First, about getting used to Burgess. He had only been there for about a month when his freshman semester started. Astrid had been nice enough to give him a ride since his father worked, among other reasons.

 

He was amazed she was willing to give him a ride. Well, she promised him she would, but he figured that the time came she would back out of it. Burgess was a good six to seven hour drive from his portside home town of Berk and gas is not cheap. But he couldn’t have been happier when she showed up and loaded up off his stuff in her mom’s borrowed grey 2001 Chevrolet blazer and he left Berk.

 

It’s wasn’t like he hated Berk in itself, but the people living there made is difficult for someone like Hiccup to thrive. Not to mention certain memories that Berk held, good and bad—bad mostly, made looking at his surrounding unbearable at times. There were times when he could look and replay fond memories, mainly of his mother, but eventually even those became painful.

 

Despite the fact that Berk wasn’t his most favorite place, it was still his home. It was all he knew and that had to count for something. He mind then wandered to his possible future here in Burgess: the friends he will make, getting his degree, and experiencing life outside his small village. It was exciting just thinking about it. Maybe finding someone he would be proud to say he was with. The crooked smile had returned to his face and his cheeks began to heat up and not just from walking as long as he had.

 

Burgess seemed to hold something promising for his future. Thaddeus Burgess Academy had offered him a full scholarship, plus room and board, and even though Hiccup was still trying to adjust to the change, he felt more accepted amongst the faceless crowds than in his entire village, save a very few people. His father, Stoick “the vast”, was the head over the docks and had been for the last twenty years. Since Berk’s main source of trade was depended on the docks, Stoick became their quote-unquote “Chief”.

 

His father was the quintessence of their Viking heritage and also a born leader. He was great at what he did and was always firm, but fair. It would have seemed like his father had all his ducks in a row, but out of all his accomplishments, Hiccup was apparently not one of them. Hiccup was not like the others in his village. The other guys in Berk his age were huge, had big beefy arms, stood at six feet tall, and were already on their way of growing a mighty beard. Hiccup, who would be considered normal size anywhere else, was 5 foot 9 and was lucky that he had stubble on his chin.

 

He knew that his father loved him, even though since his beloved wife, Valka, died it was showed less and less. He still had hope that his father cared for him, but just wasn’t good at showing it. At least that’s what Hiccup told his therapist.

 

“Excuse me,” came a somewhat recognizable voice that interrupted his thoughts. Hiccup snapped his head to the side of the machine where he heard the voice coming from. It was, of course, the only other person there. Hiccup carded his fingers through his hair that had begun to mat down with perspiration and pushed it out of his sight. He couldn’t help but take notice that the blue hoodie the man was wearing was now missing. Instead, he was a white shirt with the center’s logo that was located on his left pectoral.

 

It became apparent that the man was very fit, not big and gross with all his veins bulging hard against his skin, but fit. The contours of his arms and chest were easily definable through the cotton fabric. His body shape was picturesque on what Hiccup was aiming to become. He knew that no matter how hard he would try that there would never be a way his body would allow him to be a big buff man. Even if he could, he wouldn’t. Hiccup always thought that men who were incredible buff— veins protruding, limited mobility, and looking like their bodies would explode at any moment—that look never really appealed to him at all. He found it to be pretty gross.

 

He stared at the odd haired man with confusion on his features before he hit the STOP button on the control pad, causing the machine to come to a halt. Did he have to leave? No, it was a 24 hour gym. Was there something wrong with his membership? These were just a few questions that he was able to ask himself before the man continued, “I couldn’t help but notice that you, um, well, seemed a bit lost earlier. Clearly you have found something now, but you were kinda wandering around the gym for like 45 minutes to an hour looking pretty lost,” he gave a small grin, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, “I didn’t want to say anything then because at first I figured you were just checking things out, but then it kinda dawned on me. Anyways, I was just gonna let you know that we do offer a personal training program and if you are interested, I’d be more than happy to help you out. It is my job after all.”

 

Oh gods, this was embarrassing. This guy actually sat there and watched him almost fly off of a treadmill that was going full speed, almost crushing his foot with a weight he couldn’t lift, and wandering aimlessly around this place for an hour. Hiccup’s face began to glow a brilliant shade of red due to the embarrassment, “Uhhh... wow… heh,” he sputtered, “Thank you for summing that up for me. If I had known you were watching me make an idiot of myself I probably wouldn’t have made it so obvious that I was clueless on how to work these machines,” he deadpanned. The man chuckled heartily, flashing his beautifully white teeth. Though he had embarrassed himself, Hiccup couldn’t help but notice his amazing smile. His teeth were incredibly straight and sparkled like freshly fallen snow.

 

“It’s no biggie, really. You are not the first to come in here and wander around lost. I have seen people try to take off full speed on the treadmill and end up flying off and smacking to wall, so I think you are good,” he said, sending Hiccup a small gesture.

 

Hiccup slumped onto the rail of the machine, letting his fingers nervously scratch the back of his head which he mainly did out of habit, “That doesn’t really help,” he replied flatly, “but anyways, I don’t know. What all would I be doing,” he asked stepping down from the machine.

 

“First, I would get your weight and depending on your goals, I would arrange a work out that would help you achieve that. Also, I can give you dieting advice/plans that can help you out as well,” he explained, “That’s if you are planning in making a habit of coming in at this time. I normally work nights and as you can see we are slammed at this hour.”

 

Hiccup chuckled as he eyed the empty center, before bringing his attention back to the man as he continued, “But it is up to you. It’s not something you have to do, but it’s out in the open for you to think about. Anyways, I’ll leave ya be.” And with that the man turned on his heels and began walking back to his post behind the counter. The brunette began to think of what would be in store for him if he had taken the man up on his offer. He had heard horror stories about personal trainers and how they tend to expect a person to change quickly and yell in your face like a drill sergeant and that was something Hiccup didn’t particularly want to have happen.  But the man didn’t seem like the type to do something like that. He couldn’t picture anyone in this center doing that here mainly because it gave off a mellow atmosphere.

 

He pushed himself off the railing of the machine and walked over to the water fountain, taking a nice long drink before looking over at the clock and saw that it was almost 4:00 a.m. and that he had better head out since he had class that coming afternoon. But as be made his way to the locker room he glanced over to the counter, seeing the man beginning to clean off the counter of miscellaneous papers and then disinfecting its surface. Hiccup’s brown eyebrows knitted together as he looked down at his thin body and then back to the man. _‘hmm, I suppose I could give this a shot and if I don’t like it I can always just go do my own thing,”_ he thought to himself as he made his way to the front.

 

The man’s eyes glanced over at him and a smile cracked across his face, “What’s up?”

 

“I, uh, well, I think I’ll go ahead and give it a shot. As long as you don’t like, I don’t know, scream in my face and make my arms fall off,” the brunette replied.

 

The man behind the counter laughed. He seemed to have been enjoying Hiccup’s dry, sarcastic humor since the guy first walked in the door. Even though it was obvious that the guy has poor body image, he seemed like he carried himself well, “No, I don’t scream in people’s face, I don’t know who could be motivated by that. I would punch someone in the throat that’s for damn sure,” he quipped with a mischievous grin, “And as for your arms falling off, well, they won’t fall completely off. You will be a bit sore, but it will pass depending on how often you come up here.”

 

Hiccup rolled his eyes and shook his head, “Well, that’s good to know. Anyways, I’m going to try to come up here as much as I possibly can. So maybe 4 or 5 times a week,” which the last part was more of a question than a statement.

 

“That’s great!” he exclaimed and reached over and grabbed a piece of paper and pen and began scribbling something down, “I’m giving you my work schedule so you’ll know what days I’ll be here,” he explained as he handed the paper to Hiccup and extending his hand to him, “I’m Jackson, or Jack, whichever you prefer. I look forward to working with you.”

 

Hiccup took his hand after grabbing the paper and shook, “Nice to meet you, Jackson. I go by Hiccup.”

 

The smile from Jack’s face faded into an expression of disbelief, “’Hiccup?’ Is that your real name?” he asked, slowly pulling his hand back.

 

“No, it’s a nickname,” he replied, slowly.

 

“Ah… well that’s a pretty cool nickname,” he said, his chipper smile returning, “My full name is actually Jackson Overland-Frost…, or Jack Frost,” he said wish less enthusiasm, earning a laugh from the younger man.

 

“Seriously? That’s fantastic,” he chirped through his chuckles, “Well, Mr. Jack Frost, I hope you don’t kill me in the near future with strenuous work-outs. Now I’m gonna go change, I actually need to head out. But I will be back tomorrow night.”

 

Jack nodded and shook his head as he watched the skinny man walk off towards the locker room and disappear behind the door. He could tell this guy was going to be fun. It had been quite some time since he had had the opportunity to train someone since he moved to the graveyard shift. Normally people left around 1 a.m. at the latest. But since summer was gone and autumn was settling in and besides a few college students studying for exams and need to clear their heads and few stragglers that would appeared ever so often, he was pretty much by himself. He never understood why North, the owner and manager, insisted on making the gym 24 hours. Then again he wasn’t going to complain, he worked a 9 hour shift and had minimal cleaning—taking out trash, refilling the disinfecting spray bottles, cleaning bathrooms—and that was something he could do with a 2 to 3 hour period. So for the most part he would work-out himself, catch up on sleep, or watch TV in the lounge.

 

But despite him now going to miss out on sleeping time, he felt that training this Hiccup guy was a way better use of time. He just hoped that the guy was serious about it. Jack had several occasions where he was going to train someone, but they ended just wasting his time. He picked up a piece of paper and scribbled down his work schedule in messy, but still legible handwriting.

 

Jack’s attention turned toward the locker room door as he heard the door shutting in that direction and smiled at the reappearance of the freckled lad. He had changed back into his normal clothes and was carrying his green duffle over his shoulder. The bi-colored hair man smiled as he passed the counter, “Have a good night,” he said with a small wave. Jack gave waved back before passing him the paper, “Take it easy,” he replied as he watched Hiccup fold the paper up and place it inside of his bag and walked out the door.

 

* * *

 

**To be Continued...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to let you guys know, we have just barely scratched the surface of the story. We dig a little bit into Hiccup’s past, learning a bit about his life in Berk before coming to Burgess, a bit about his mother, and a few other details. We also begin to learn a bit about Jack. 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy. =D

When Hiccup arrived home that morning, it was almost 5 a.m. He was greeted at the door of his apartment by Toothless, his black Norwegian Forest cat. The lad smiled down at his furry companion, “Hey, bud,” he spoke with a crooked smile. He flicked the light on that was on the wall by the door where he kicked off his shoes and threw his duffel on into the hunter green arm chair as he passed it. When he ventured into his small apartment it became apparent to him that Toothless had grown bored whilst he was gone.

 

          Littering the floor were his school books, papers, and pretty much anything that was on the counter and coffee table. Hiccup let out a deep sigh and looked over at the culprit who merely flicked his tail at the sight of his owner’s eyes meeting his bright green ones, “Seriously, Toothless?” he asked, not expecting an answer, as he began picking up the mess he was greeted with, “You really couldn’t find anything else better to do than to destroy my apartment that I just cleaned earlier?”

 

          Toothless let out a loud _meow_ and began to purr, knowing that his owner couldn’t stay mad at him. He rubbed against Hiccup’s legs, almost causing the boy to trip several times. When he saw that Hiccup was paying more attention to the mess at hand than to him he jumped up onto the coffee table and mused himself by watching the brunette clean up the mess.

 

          Hiccup finally finished picking up the surprise mess he came home to and placed the stack of papers onto the coffee table. He was tired and needed sleep. As he walked down the hallway to his room he turned and looked at Toothless who was perched on the wooden coffee table, “Now bud, I am only going to tell you this one more time: stop messing up the place. If you keep it up I will break out those eel flavored treats you _love_ so much,” he said in a teasing tone.

 

          Toothless snorted and narrowed his toxic green eyes at his owner who looked at him with a big satisfied smirk on his face. He lifted his paw and after giving a few graceful licks, placed it on top of the stack of papers that was just recently placed there by his trusting owner and proceeded to push them off, scattering them once more across the floor.

 

          Hiccup’s eyes widened, “Toothless!!” but before Hiccup had a chance to react, the cat simply disappeared from sight. He should have expected this from the furry beast. This would not be the first time something like this has happened. Ever since he got Toothless the cat has quite the smartass personality. Yes, his cat was a smartass. He never knew that an animal could act so human until he met Toothless. Even though he couldn’t talk, he answered Hiccup when spoken to and was able to get his points across to his owner when he wanted to be fed, left alone, or when Hiccup made him mad, he could get back at him—this being a perfect example of that.

 

          The auburn haired boy let out another annoyed sigh as he stared at the papers that were once scattered all over the floor. He pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut, shaking his head in annoyance, “I’m not even going to bother with you right now,” he spoke into the room, know his cat was still somewhere in there, “You win. I’ll pick it up tomorrow.” And with that, he slapped the light off and drug his feet as he made his way back to his room.

 

          He dressed into his night clothes, a simple oversized black t-shirt and baggy olive green night pants, and flopped down on the bed, not bothering with a shower at the moment; he figured he would just take one when he got up. Even though he was annoyed at what Toothless had done in the living room, he wouldn’t dream of not letting the large, green eyed cat sleep in his normal spot at the end of the bed, which he had claimed during Hiccup’s dressing. He reached down and rubbed the mischievous creature’s soft fur before reclaiming comfort under the covers and drifting off to sleep as the morning sun began to peer in through his window.

 

**\+ +**

          Jack stood on the roof of the building, leaning against the cement load bearing wall, gazing passed the trees where he could see the sun creep up behind the spotty, grey clouds. The crisp autumn morning was easing its way, gingerly, through the lightening sky of Burgess. The foliage reaching its peak, painting the leaves that gracefully floated to the ground, with striking golds, reds, and oranges. Jack had spent many mornings on the roof, taking in the serene atmosphere the city had to offer in its slumber. Even during the slow summer months, he would sit up there all night.

 

As the light of the morning sky grew brighter, the small city below him was slowly beginning to come alive. The traffic light had stopped blinking and the streets slowly began to fill with cars and noise, killing the picturesque moment Jack was living in solitude on the roof. Jack rolled his eyes and shook his head in annoyance as he made his way to the latter and climbed down and entered the building through the back door he had left propped open.  

 

          It was close to 7 a.m. when Jack’s relief, Aster Bunnymund, arrived. How the tall Australian man bust through the doors, like he always did, bright eyed and bushy tailed was beyond Jack’s comprehension. He greeted the younger man as he came behind the counter, casually inspecting it to see if Jack actually did his work from the previous night or just slept.

 

          “So, mate, did anything interesting come about last night?” he asked, his accent soaking his words.

 

          Jack smiled and sat down on the counter, watching amusingly as Aster inspected his work, “Actually, yeah.” His eyes brightening as he thought about the occurrences that happened only a few hours ago, “I finally have me someone to train.”

 

          Aster peered over at him. He approached the bi-color haired man and popped at his butt a few times, indicating for Jack to not sit on the counter, “Jackie, counter surfaces are for glasses, not asses,” he stated firmly, making Jack sigh heavily before coming to his feet once more.

 

          “So, who is the sorry, sad sack that is gonna have the _privilege_ being trained by you,” Aster teased, with a snicker.

 

          “Hey!” he pouted, crossing his arms, “I’m a good trainer. I’m young, fit, and can take you down, Peter Cottontail.” Aster rolled his eyes at the nickname. He knew Jack loved to tease him about his name along with his age. It was a common occurrence. However, Aster wasn’t that old, he was only 32 and in impeccable shape at that. The Aussie was solid as a rock and dare he say, handsome as well—muscular arms, sharp jawline, enviable six-pack, short salt and pepper hair that carried a hint of wave to it, and bright ivy green eyes. And even though Jack teased him about his age, if the opportunity of challenging the older man ever came up, Jack would most likely turn it down out of know he would have his ass handed to him.

 

The older male took off his grey sweater he was wearing and hung it on the back of the chair before coming back around the counter and proceeding to check out Jack’s work, making sure there wasn’t any slacking off. Jack trailed behind him as Aster checked the disinfecting sprays and paper towel dispensers, “Anyways, the person you are training,” the salt and pepper haired man turned his attention back to Jack, “do they seem like they are serious about it or do they seem like are gonna do a few sessions and quit?”

 

          Jack crossed his arms and crinkled his brow in thought. He had only spoken to Hiccup for a few minutes and as far as he could tell the guy really did need some motivation. He had seen many people like Hiccup come and go over the years, so it was hard to tell. All he knew was he liked the guy so far. He seemed like he could hold a great conversation, “Well, to be honest, I’m not sure. But, we’ll see.” He chimed, optimistically.

 

          “Well, just remember to not push them too hard at first,” Aster told him as he started heading back to the front, Jack in tow, “because if they are pushed too hard at the beginning they are more likely to give up sooner.”

 

          Jack rolled his eyes, “Thank you for that, Ol’ Wise One. I think Hiccup will be fun to train. I do think he has poor self-esteem though.”

 

          Aster cocked a dark eyebrow, “Hiccup? Little skinny bloke?” he asked, gesturing the cinnamon haired boy’s small stature.

 

          “Yeah, you know him?” Jack asked, cocking his head to the side.

 

          “Well, no, not personally. He registered here a few days ago. I only remember him because he was the only person I registered this week and his weird name,” he said with a chuckle, “He looked pretty nervous when he came in. I thought for a moment he was going to run out of here.”

 

          Jack snorted, “Well, you are a scary old man. Plus I believe he said that it was a nickname.”

 

          Aster rolled his eyes, and playfully smacked at the younger male, which Jack dodged, “Oh, rack off, Frost. It’s quittin’ time for you anyways and I can only handle you in moderation.”

 

Jack laughed as he jumped out of the way of Aster’s swing. He didn’t need to be told twice that he could go. He grabbed his hoodie and keys that were in the back room before sprinting towards the door, “Oh!” he turned back to Aster, “North said he was gonna be here around 4 o’clock instead of three and don’t forget about practice tomorrow!” and with that he out the door and jumped in his car.

 

**+   +**

 

          The office was quite cool this time around as Hiccup sat slightly reclined in the plush tan couch that his therapist had offered to him. Dr. Toothiana sat attentively, with her legs propping up her notepad, at the opposite end of the sofa. She was a petite woman and looked like she was from Asian descent. She had medium blonde hair that was in a partial upward style, dyed with mostly streaks of turquois along with some purple and pink. She wasn’t someone who would come across as a doctor on first sight. However, Dr. Toothiana was a very sweet person and easy to talk to. She didn’t throw prescriptions at you when you first walked into the door or sit there with saying “Mm-hmm and does that make you feel?” she actually held conversation.

 

          Even though he had only been seeing her for a short while, Hiccup found that therapy wasn’t as bad as he initially thought it to be. He looked over at his flamboyant doctor and waited until she had finished scribbling in her notepad. She looked up at him with her vibrant violet colored eyes, which he figured to be contacts, and smiled, “Okay, Hiccup, so you went to the gym, that’s great to hear! And you signed up with a personal trainer! It seems to me that you have better control over your anxieties than you give yourself credit for.”

 

          Hiccup shrugged and let his eyes sweep across the room before coming back to Toothiana, “Well, despite the initial embarrassment of having the guy watch me make a fool of myself, yeah I think it went pretty well.”

 

          The petite woman shook her head and exhaled, “But we all do things like that. I have had my fair share of blunders myself and I know my daughter has too. Except her’s is more of not knowing when to stop taking,” she said with a small chuckle, “But you have to not worry about what some people think, especially if it’s a total stranger and you may never see them again,” she explained, earning a small nod from him. It’s not like Hiccup didn’t know this, it was more of something he couldn’t help but let happen.

 

          “Now,” she announced, clapping her hands together, “the last time you were here you spoke about your father. If you would like to expand on that, maybe I can get a better understanding of your relationship, or lack thereof?”

 

          Hiccup let out a deep breath. His father was a difficult subject. He didn’t hate him, in fact, he loved his father very much, and it was the lack of communication over the years that built the wall between them. His father didn’t even know he was in therapy. The last time he spoke to him was the day after he moved into his apartment.

 

          “My father,” he began, letting out a sigh, “he isn’t and hasn’t really ever been the epitome of parenthood. A lot of it has to do with our community, traditions, and just overall culture.” He looked at Toothiana with sad eyes and she returned to him a simple nod and look of understanding, “You said that your family and community are descended from Norway and still held some of the traditions of the old Vikings, correct?” she scribbled more in her notepad once getting his approved nod.

 

          “Yes and because of that, I guess you could say I was born a disappointment. Everyone in Berk is, like huge. I am seriously thinking they put something in the water supply. They all are real tall, have the arms of a bull on steroids, and the attitude to match. Then there is me, the small, weak, meek, nasally voiced, little hiccup—the runt of the litter. That’s why I go by Hiccup and not Hamish,” he explained, shifting on the couch, turning so his back is against the arm, “I was just not up to par. Well, except to my mother. She was always the one who saw me as a person.”

 

          Toothiana tapped her philtrum with her pen, “I’m sure your father sees you as a person too. Maybe he just doesn’t know how to express it. Do you still speak to your mother?”

 

          Hiccup shook his head, averting his gaze, “I have tried, but I haven’t gotten a response yet. She died when I was thirteen from breast cancer. And I believe the day she died, my father did too. He took pretty much all the pictures down and put them in an album, along with some of her clothes and he keeps them in his closet. He doesn’t really like talking about her anymore and he really didn’t speak to me that much afterwards. It’s like he is on autopilot. The only people he speaks to is his best friend, Gobber and his friend Oswald.”

 

          The multicolored haired woman hummed in acknowledgement and was quiet for a moment before shifting in her seat, “I am so sorry about your mother, Hiccup. Cancer is a terrible thing and I am sorry your mother had to go through that. However, when it comes to your father, it seems to me that he has stalled in the bereavement stages. Everyone goes through them differently and sometimes people stall. Some leave bedrooms untouched for decades, some will refuse to wash clothing, and some retract themselves away from the ones they love most. He may not have just lost a wife and mother of his child, but a best friend as well,” she explained, her eyes showing a glint of sorrow.

 

          Hiccup nodded at the explanation, he knew what she was saying. He figured this much years ago, but to have it acknowledged by a professional shined a new light on the theory. This, also, wasn’t the first time he had heard this. However, at the time he hardly wanted to talk to anyone let alone listen to anything they had to say.

 

          He remembered standing in his black suit that was only worn at weddings and funerals, before a beautiful mahogany casket with plush pink bedding where his mother laid. Flowers and cards from friends and the community were set up around the casket. Hiccup remembered looking at her thinking how she looked so peaceful, like she was sleeping. Her hands were folded neatly and resting across her abdomen on top of her favorite old quilt that was given to her years ago by a friend. He remembered how beautiful she looked even though she had lost a significant amount of weight due to the chemotherapy. She was wearing a new pair of pink satin pajamas because she told Hiccup how she thought being buried in a suit looked silly.

 

          He remembered approaching the casket slowly, tears filling his eyes before a small blink helped push them out and they slid down his freckled cheek. Stoick stood solemnly in the back of the room with Gobber, neither of them saying a word. He remembered taking her chilled hand into his and tracing the form of her thin fingers in his as he looked at her. Her soft auburn hair had grown back, but was still shorter than its normal length.

 

Choked sobs came from him as he leaned over Valka, his beloved mother, begging her to not leave him. He remembered his knees going weak and slowing sliding to the ground, letting go of his mother’s hand as he rested his head against the coolness of the casket. He knew that his mother wouldn’t have wanted him to be like this. She wouldn’t want him to be sad for her, but he just wasn’t ready to see her go. He was glad that her painful suffering had ended, but he didn’t want her to leave him alone. And in that moment that is exactly how he felt— alone.

 

He wasn’t sure how long he was like that, but the next thing he knew was feeling a large hand on his small shoulder and looking over to see Gobber. Normally the thought of Gobber in a suit would be funny. The man had one hand, that was changeable, and one leg and the thought of him trying to get a suit on and tie a tie, well it was beyond comprehension. He looked at Hiccup with sad eyes and offered his hand to help the boy come to his feet.

 

Hiccup remembered looking back where his father and Gobber had been standing and saw that he had vanished, but he didn’t bother asking the man beside him where he had gone to. The only thing he remembered the robust man telling him, in that thick accent that pretty much all of Berk was infamous for, was, “I will miss Valka very much. She was a damn fine woman and friend. I know things are hard for ya now, but remember, your mother wouldn’t have been able to let go if she didn’t believe ya were in good hands. Your father,” he paused, letting out a heavy sigh, “he may not be showing it now, but he is taking this just as hard as you. He didn’t just lose his wife, but he also lost a best friend. Give him time. He’ll come around.”

 

But his father never really did go back to being his old self. His father hardly spoke to him and began to bury himself in his work. And it stayed like that for years.

 

“Hiccup,” Dr. Toothiana asked, snapping the brunette out of his thoughts.

 

 Hiccup turned his attention back to the multicolored haired woman who was looking at him with concerned violet eyes. He felt something wet on his face and reached his fingers to his freckled cheek where he felt tears slowly falling from his mossy green eyes. He quickly wiped them away as he felt his face heat up with embarrassment, “I’m sorry,” he spoke softly, sniffling, “I didn’t think that would happen.”

 

Toothiana sat down her notepad on the couch and came to her feet and walked over to her desk where she retrieved a small box of tissues and returned, offering some to the small lad, which he graciously accepted with a small ‘thank you’.

 

“It’s okay to cry, Hiccup. It means you are healing,” she said, picking up her notepad and pen once more, “If you would like to talk about your mother, I would be more than happy to listen.”

 

Hiccup wiped the stream of salty tears that had run down his cheeks. He didn’t mean to cry, in fact he hated crying. He knew it was supposed to help heal and make you feel better, but it never really did that with him. The pain was always still there and not just the of losing his mother, the pain from the loneliness he suffered for years after, as well as his numerous other demons that dwelled in his closet, and the shame of these demons’ existence. What would his mother, who left him behind thinking he was in good hands, do if she knew the things he had done? If she stood before him now, he probably wouldn’t be able to look her in her eyes.

 

Hiccup sighed and thought for a moment, balling the tissue in his sweaty hands, “Um, maybe not today. I will try next time…” he lamented.

 

“Okay, sweetie, would you like to talk about your ex?” she asked.

 

Oh boy, he was afraid this would come up. Hiccup’s ex was one of the main reasons he was here. The only reason why he hadn’t said too much on the subject was because Toothiana wanted to know more about him as a person before slowly chipping away at the surface and digging into the root of his problems. The freckled teen chewed at his bottom lip before shaking his head ‘yes’.

 

“Okay, good. So, have you had any contact with him?” she asked.

 

“No,” Hiccup said, picking at his fingernail, “I lost all contact with Dagur when I came here for school. I even got a new cell phone number just to I wouldn’t be tempted to revert back into old habits if he were to try and contact me.”

 

Toothiana nodded, scribbling more in her notepad, “So, this Dagur, how did you too meet?”

 

The thought of Dagur made the cinnamon haired teen uneasy, but he knew talking about it would help, after all that was why he was here, “My dad’s friend that he met while working at the docks, Oswald, Dagur is his son. We have actually known each other for years, but we didn’t see much of each other until I was a freshman in high school. Dagur had always been deranged. When I was younger, about six or seven, we went swimming at the beach and proceeded to try and drown me, which he found to be incredibly hilarious and when I would bring it up him he would laugh about it and smile like it was a fond memory.”

 

Toothiana cupped her hands over her mouth, “Oh, my goodness. He tried _drowning_ you?! Why,” she asked with the look of terror on her features.

 

Hiccup almost found himself laughing and he didn’t know why, “Well, it wasn’t as bad as when he used me for target practice and would throw knives at me.”

 

Toothiana was mortified at this point. What kind of a person did stuff like this and wasn’t locked away in an asylum by now? And who would give someone with such violent tendencies sharp objects anyways? “Oh Hiccup, how did you ever end up with someone like that,” she found herself asking, not meaning to offend him, but just out of pure curiosity.

 

“Well,” he said, coming to his feet to stretch his legs, “it was something that probably never should have happened. He was a senior in high school and I was a freshman and my dad began to encourage me to hang out with him, I suppose to ‘man me up’ and it just sort of… happened. I figure that it must have been due to the fact that I was so starved for affection of any kind, I didn’t really care where it came from and by then he had calmed down some, he wasn’t as aggressive,” he sighed as he began pacing around the room and muttered, just above a whisper, “but that didn’t last long.”

 

Toothiana noticed the tone of the young man’s voice growing between anxious, anger, and sadness. She was incredibly proud of him for being able to voice these feelings with her despite the fact that he was obviously uncomfortable with the subject and even though she still had many questions left to ask she knew that this was a good stopping place, “Sweetie, you don’t have to keep talking about it if you don’t want to. We can always pick up on it during your next visit. You have already made great strides today and I don’t want you feeling like you have to spill everything all out at once.”

 

She sat her pad down and rose to her feet and approached Hiccup. He took notice of her height and how she only came up to his shoulders, making her no taller than 5 foot. She placed a hand on his thin arm, which she could feel through his olive hoodie. She gave him a warm smile that seemed almost motherly towards him. She knew that this young man had been through so much just from the previous sessions and wanted to help him, but she also knew that having him face it all at once could have repercussions.

 

“Would you be okay if we stopped,” he asked.

 

“Of course! I am not here to rush you. You can tell me anything you want if and when you are ready. You have only been seeing me a few weeks and I want you to feel comfortable telling me, not obligated,” she explained as she walked back over to the couch and retrieved her notepad and stocked over to her desk, casually tossing the pad onto the surface.

 

“Thank you,” he said with a small crooked smile, “I’ll see you next week.”

 

As he made his way to the door Toothiana called out to him, “Oh! Hiccup, I have something for you.” He watched as the petite woman began to rummage through her desk drawer. Within a minute or two she pulled out a small book and brought it to him, “Here you go,” she said as she handed him the book. He noticed that the small green book was bound with twine and had a small decorative clasp that held it shut. He opened it and found that the pages were all blank. He peered back over at the woman before him, “A journal?”

 

She chuckled and combed her fingers through her hair, “Yeah, I made it. It’s one of mine and my daughter’s many hobbies. But I want you to have that one. It’s not mandatory or anything, but if it helps, write down things that have been bothering you and may want to talk about, things you want to get off your chest, or whatever,” she told him.

 

“Oh, well, thank you. I like to write so I am sure I can put it to good use,” he chimed as he headed out the door.

 

**+   +**

 

          The trees swayed in the winds of an on-coming storm. The foliage rained through the autumn night and crunched under Hiccup’s footfalls as he made his way down the side walk. He could hear the occasional rumble of thunder in the distance. It wasn’t common for storms like this to roll through this part of the country at this time of year, but they did happen and when most people tried to stay out of the storm’s path by hiding away inside and occasionally stealing glances through the windows, Hiccup never minded to be out in it. He enjoyed the feeling of the winds tussle his hair about and the soft raindrops on his skin; he even enjoyed a nice lightning show.

 

          Tonight was no different, as he approached the gym, noticing the same lone car in the parking lot. He took a moment to watch the trees dance as the wind blew through them. A soft rumble of thunder could be heard and was then accompanied by a flash of lightning in the distance that seemed almost therapeutic in a way. Hiccup paced up the sloped parking lot to the cement building and peered in through the large windows. He looked toward the front desk and could see that it was empty. He shrugged it off to a number of reasons why Jack had abandoned his post, for all he knew the bicolor haired man was in the restroom.

 

          Hiccup entered the main entrance, immediately noticing the techno music that played over the speakers. He felt a slight awkwardness, not knowing exactly what he should be doing. Did he wait for Jack or did he go ahead and dress out? He exhaled heavily and decided while he waited for his elusive trainer to reappear he would go dress out.

 

          As he approached the locker rooms he noticed that there were two black pole stands with a black nylon rope that stretched across the entrance and a sign that read ‘CLOSED FOR CLEANING’. Hiccup rolled his eyes and scoffed. Well, at least now he had a pretty good idea of where Jack was. He turned his attention to the set of tables that were by the windows. He figured he would just go sit over there and wait until his trainer was done doing whatever it was he was doing.

 

          As he walked away from the door something caught his attention. He heard the normal techno/dance music over the speakers, but what he was hearing was not coming from them. It was muffled and quite loud, but he couldn’t figure where it was coming from. He pulled out his phone and checked it to see if it was ringing, hoping it wasn’t, he had already spoke to Astrid earlier and she told him she was going to bed because she had to work early the next morning. He had a small panic attack because the only reason someone would call this late was if something bad had happened, but when he looked at the glowing screen and saw that it wasn’t that and that allowed his pacing heart to calm.

 

          There was only one other place that it could have been coming from and that was the locker room he was walking away from. _‘Was he singing in there?’_ Hiccup thought as he returned to the door, pressing his ear to it. He could hear the loud, but muffled male singing, which Hiccup figured it was most likely Jack, coming from within.

 

“ _There you go messin' with my mind_

_I am usually better when I lie_

_There I go stuck inside a shell_

_And you're living on the other side_

_A lover’s carousel_ ”

 

          Hiccup could feel the corners of his mouth being tugged upward. He pulled one of the black pole stands and set it to the side, allowing him access to the locker room. It took everything he had to not laugh at the sight he saw upon entering. There was Jack standing in the center of the locker room, which had soapy water coating the tile floor, wearing a pair of headphones and singing—rather loudly— into the deck brush he was currently using.

 

“ _If you only knew,_ ” he sang before resting the brush’s pole against his chest and preceded to air-drum the beat, which Hiccup unfortunately could not hear. Even though he knew and like the original song that was being sung, he actually liked how Jack was singing it. His voice was incredible—not too deep, but also, not too small or soft. Hiccup felt his cheeks flush and a tightness clench at his chest as the bicolor haired man expelled and melodiously—and quite sexy sounding, “ _Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...I lose control…_ ”

 

 

          It was spellbinding the way Jack moved about the floor, the way his voice echoed off the walls. The way his hips shifted and his hand ran down his chest. Hiccup couldn’t help, but feel mesmerized by him.

 

“ _When I hear your body move_

_Through the walls_

_In the next room…_ ”

 

          It seemed that every time Jack sang out that loud, “ _Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh_

_I lose control…_ ” Hiccup’s face grew brighter and his chest seemed tighter. There was just the way he sang it that was so alluring. He knew that he must look like a total idiot, standing there blushing like a schoolgirl with a goofy, crooked smile on his face, but he just couldn’t look away. Jack continued to sing and brush at the floor, though he seemed more interested in the music than actually cleaning.

 

“ _When I hear your body move_

_And I'm DYING to break through_

_To the next room…_ ”

 

          At that moment Jack turned to grab the squeegee that was resting against the sink, he glanced up, catching a glimpse of the mirror and quickly whirling around, clutching at his chest. He had felt himself jump and almost scream like a girl, but managed to keep it as a sharp inhale, “Oh, holy snap, dude,” he exclaimed, panting heavily before letting out a soft laugh, pulling the headphones from off of his ears, “you scared the shit outta me!”

 

Hiccup’s face grew slightly brighter, but then again Jack’s did too, “I’m so sorry,” he said, letting out a small chuckle himself, “I, uh, didn’t… know where you were at and, um, figured I’d change out while I waited. But I saw the sign and figured… I would just go sit down… then I heard the singing and I…” he trailed off, habitually rubbing the back of his neck.

 

Jack’s demeanor grew more relaxed as his body calmed down from its shock, “And you just thought you’d sneak in and check out where that amazing singing was coming from,” he chuckled, his words dripping with his mirth.

 

Hiccup rolled his eyes, “Conceited much,” he quipped dryly, earning another hearty laugh from the man, making that tightness in Hiccup’s chest return as he was shined that beautifully white smile. Hiccup couldn’t help but think how attractive this man was—wait what? Well, attractive for a guy… or whatever. He cleared his throat and averted his eyes to anything that wasn’t the bicolor haired man and chuckled wryly.

 

“Well, I wasn’t expecting you to come in until at least 2:30, so I thought I’d get my cleaning done, or at least most of it, while I waited. But I’m almost done in here, so I will be out in a bit. If you want, you can go hang out in the lounge and watch some TV and I’ll come get you when I’m done and we can get started,” he chimed. Hiccup nodded and adjusted his duffel that he had been holding, bringing it closer to his frame and left the locker room, replacing the rope across the door as he walked to the lounge.

 

He couldn’t help the crooked smile that remained on his features despite his efforts to rid himself of it. His freckled cheeks remained hot and his heart was still beating fast, not as rapidly, but more than normal. He didn’t understand why he became like this because of the other male. Yes, the man was very attractive and had a fantastic voice, but so what? He didn’t know him. He _just_ met the guy last night. So, why was he so entranced by him? Maybe it was the fact that he was so kind natured or he seemed to have a great sense of humor, something Dagur never seemed to have. Dagur’s crooked smile was always malicious and came from dark humor. Whenever Dagur smiled it meant something bad was about to happen. It was like this guy was the polar opposite of his ex and he didn’t have to know him well to know that there was something about him that he liked.

 

He sat down on the couch provided, setting his gym bag on the ground beside him, cleared his thoughts of Dagur, and pulled out his phone, swiping through it to find him something to do while he waited.

 

His mossy green eyes glanced out the large window across from him and took notice of the rain that was harshly beating against the building. He could hear the muffled rumbles of thunder along with the soothing downpour and see the occasional flash of lightning that lit the sky, allowing him to be able to fully grasp the severity of the storm. The brunette sighed. It wasn’t like he didn’t enjoy the storm, but what he didn’t look forward to was to be walking home in it. Yes, a light rain shower was nothing, but it looked like someone had turned on a fire hose on Burgess.

 

He turned his attention back to the device in his hand and pulled up Candy Crush and started his level, matching up the small candies and breaking them away. He did this for a while and after running out of moves, he closed the app. He opened his weather app and checked the forecast out of curiosity of how long this was supposed to last. When pulled up the radar map, all he saw was a large mass of reds, yellows, and greens as well as a banner going across the screen indicating a slow moving severe thunderstorm and a flood watch.

 

“Well, that’s wonderful,” he mumbled to himself as he locked the screen and placed the phone back in the pocket of his jacket and leaned back onto the couch and closed his eyes, taking in the sound of the rain that continued to smack the window. Well it was a good thing he was going to be there for a while. Maybe the storm would subside after a while and his venture home wouldn’t be so bad.

 

Jack exited the locker room and took the cleaning materials—mop, squeegee, deck brush, mop bucket, and cleaning chemicals— back to the back room and placed them in the storage closet. He still couldn’t keep get the goofy grin off of his face from the events that took place in the locker room. It wasn’t as if he was embarrassed of his singing—in fact he was pretty proud of his voice, it was more of the fact that he was caught dancing around like an idiot and grinding on a deck brush.

 

 Jackson knew it was all in good fun and he had never been the type of person who couldn’t laugh at himself along with others. He knew he looked ridiculous, but he didn’t care too much over it. He still found it funny, especially the look on the younger man’s face.

 

As he left the back storage area his smile fell as he took notice of the storm that had brewed outside while he was cleaning the locker rooms. Jack didn’t mind storms that much. He wasn’t fond of going out in them, but he didn’t mind watching them. The only time he found himself getting nervous was when the streets were flooding or there was a tornado warning—both understandable reasons. He worked in a gym with a lot of lose equipment and the last thing he wanted was a 50 pound barbell being thrown at him should a tornado blow through there.

 

He made his way over to the lounge area to see Hiccup lying back with his eyes closed. The smile returned to his features as he gazed down at the auburn haired lad who seemed to be at ease. Jack knew all too well that falling asleep in that place was easy when it was dead like it was so he wasn’t one to judge. Besides the techno music that could be heard faintly in the lounge and the TV that hung on the wall in there was off, it was pretty quiet. 

 

Jack approached him, “Hey man, you awake?”

 

Hiccup’s mossy green eyes fluttered open and he craned his neck to the side to see the bicolor haired man looking down at him through his auburn bangs. He hadn’t been asleep, but he also didn’t hear Jack come into the room, “Yeah, I’m awake. I was listening to the rain,” he told him as he shifted on the couch, sitting up, earning a hum of acknowledgement from Jack.

 

“Well, you can come on out here and we will get started if you want,” he said walking out of the lounge, not really giving Hiccup a chance to answer, and back to the front desk. Hiccup came to his feet and grabbed his bag and proceeded to follow Jack back to the main room. Jack came back with a small pack of papers that was stapled together and sat down at a nearby table, Hiccup joined him.

 

“I just have to fill out a few papers first and then we will get your weight and get started with the actual work-out. Sorry, but it’s just something North has us do,” he told him, and continued once Hiccup nodded, “Okay, When is your birthday and how old are you?”

 

“It’s October 30th and I am 18,” he replied.

 

“Not too much younger than me. I’m 20. How tall are you?” he asked.

 

“I’m five foot nine.”

 

“Do you have any health problems? Like asthma, chronic bronchitis, or any heart problems?”

 

Hiccup leaned forward onto the table, resting his arms on its surface, “No, not to my knowledge. Jack continued with the questionnaire, asking standard questions about this or that. Soon Hiccup started to space out. He was looking at Jack but not really listening to him. That was when he noticed something about him that really peaked his interest. Jack had the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen. But what was truly amazing about them was one was as blue as the crystalized sea of the northern Atlantic and the other was as brown as the richest soils. For a moment he sat mesmerized at this and questioned himself on how he didn’t notice this sooner.

 

“Hiccup,” he heard Jack ask, “are you alright there, bud?”

 

It was understandable, the look of pure confusion that he received from Jack when the only thing that came out of his mouth was, ”Wow… your eyes are beautiful…” –‘ _oh shit…._ ’ He thought before his eyes immediately cast down at the table and his cheeks heated from realizing what he had just said.

 

Jack was indeed taken aback by this. Yes, he knew that his eyes were normally the first thing people notice about him upon meeting him, that or his hair. Also, normally it wasn’t the guys telling him his eyes were ‘beautiful’, it was mainly women, but it didn’t bother him either way. He smiled, “Well, thank you very much. You took longer than most people to notice them and yes, they are my real eyes and not contacts.”

 

Hiccup looked up slowly through his bangs back at him. He didn’t think it was weird for a guy to say that to him? Well he wasn’t looking at him like he was disgusted with him. On the contrary, he was smiling at him. Hiccup gave a crooked smile, “Sorry I know that kinda came out of nowhere, but I just happened to notice them. It is not every day you see someone with eyes like that.”

 

Jack shifted around in his seat and played with the pen in his hand, “It’s alright. I know it’s uncommon to see blue and brown. I think it’s more common for green and brown. It was a shock to me too when I first saw them myself,” he said, his smile never fading.

 

Hiccup looked curiously at Jack, “What do you mean by that? Weren’t you born like that?”

 

Jack shook his head, “No I wasn’t born with heterochromatic eyes. Both of them were brown when I was born, but when I was ten-years-old I was in an accident and when I woke up in the hospital I had one blue eye,” he explained, carding his fingers through his bicolored hair.

 

Hiccup winced at the explanation, “Oh… I’m sorry to hear that. At least you are alright.”

 

Jack nodded and after a moment of silence he found himself changing the subject, “Anyways, I’m going to let you go change and we’ll get your weight.”

 

Hiccup nodded. He noticed how Jack had quickly changed the subject. He figured that since it was really none of his business that it was be rude to question why. He gathered his things and went to the locker room to change and after changing he met back up with Jack and weighed himself. He wasn’t too surprised to find out that he was only about 15 lbs. underweight, according to the chart they was going by. He had always been small. Even though he ate all the time, he still found himself skinny. He figured if it weren’t for his high metabolism he would weigh 600 lbs. by now.

 

After getting weighed Jack gave him a pack of papers that had suggestions for eating habits and ways of putting on weight. Then he was shown how certain machines and other equipment worked, more in depth then what Aster had shown him, and finally, the actual work-out. Jack started out slow, having Hiccup stretch well before, and proceeded to get him into light exercises—sit-ups, push-ups, leg lifts, pull ups, etc.—before moving onto testing his limits. When the brunette moaned and groaned from his muscles starting to burn, Jack seemed to always ask for him to do, whatever it was he was doing, at least 10 more.

 

It didn’t take much to have Hiccup panting and tiring. He hadn’t worked out in a while and it showed. He walked to the water fountain and drank like he had never seen water before. Jack watched in amusement before saying, “Well, now that you are warmed up, let’s get started!”

 

Hiccup looked at the man like he was crazy and let out an exasperated groan, “Warmed up? You’re kidding, right?”—‘ _fuck…_ ’

 

Jack chuckled, “Come on, I’m going easy. I’m trying to see what you are capable of and see where you need work. Now, I’m going to get you running on the treadmill for about 10 minutes, then we will take a break and after that we will work with free weights.”

 

Hiccup found running on the treadmill to be not nearly as bad as the other things the older male had him doing. He was used to walking everywhere since he didn’t have a car, so a brisk jog wasn’t too bad. Even if he was obviously out of shape and embarrassed about how it showed, it didn’t seem as bad as he thought. Jack didn’t seem to judge him and kept offering him words of encouragement. After he run/jogged for 10 minutes and worked with the free weights, ones he could actually lift, Hiccup found himself slumped over with exhaustion on the locker room bench, his body covered with perspiration and his hair matted against his scalp.

 

“You did great for your first time,” he heard from the opposite side of the room where Jack was leaning against the wall.

 

“Ugh… I am so tired. I know I am going to be sore when I wake up.”

 

“Well, maybe a bit,” Jack added, “I’m not going to lie, the third day is always the real bitch. Second day your muscles are still trying to relax, so by the third when they have relaxed, _that_ is when you will be sore.”

 

Hiccup rolled his eyes, “Thank you for summing that up for me,” he deadpanned, earning a chuckle from Jack.

 

“Well, I’ll let you change now,” he said before exiting the room.

 

After changing back into his civilian clothes, Hiccup exited the locker room and saw Jack had retained his post at the front desk. He pulled his duffel over his shoulder as he made his way to the front entrance. He became very disappointed to see that the storm had yet to let up. The winds were still howling through the trees, the rain was still pouring, and the sky was still flashing. He groaned again, feeling the desire to smack his face against the glass of the door.

 

He glanced over at Jack, “Well, I’ll see ya later.”

 

“You’re not going to walk in that, are you?” he asked.

 

“Sadly I cannot fly, so yes, that is the plan,” he retorted.

 

Jack shook his head at the smart ass comment, “Dude, it’s really coming down. If you want I can drive you.”

 

Hiccup was taken aback by this. It was a nice gesture, but he didn’t really know this guy and vice versa, also he didn’t want to get him in trouble for abandoning his post either, especially since he was the only one there. Then again it was storming and storming badly at that, “Uh, wouldn’t you get in trouble for that?”

 

“Nah, I have the keys to the place and I’m sure North will understand. Plus, I couldn’t, in all good sense, let you walk out that door right now—it’s cold, storming, and you are already pretty tired,” he explained as he grabbed his blue hoodie, pulling it over his head, and grabbing his keys before making his way around the counter.

 

Hiccup couldn’t object to that so he followed the bicolor haired man out the door, both of them pulling up their hoods and stopping for a moment as Jack locked the front door behind them and made a mad dash to his car—a light blue 2001 neon.

 

The drive to Hiccup’s apartment started out pretty quiet, save the occasional ‘turn here’. So to break the silence the brunette cleared his throat and looked over at Jack, whose eyes remained on the road, “By the way, um, sorry for, you know, barging in on your one man show earlier.”

 

Jack’s heterochromatic eyes glanced over to the younger man beside him as a big shit-eating grin spread across his face, “Well, what can I say? I’m a prima donna. You should see me when I’m actually performing.”

 

“Performing?”

 

“Yeah, I am in a cover band—300 Years of Isolation. I mean we write our own stuff too, but when we perform a lot of the time we do cover songs. Apparently we must be pretty good, they keep asking us to come back,” Jack replied with a small chuckle.

 

Hiccup smiled, “That explains why you sing so well. Where do you normally perform?”

 

“Thank you and we do a lot of clubs. The gay clubs really like us. They are the ones who usually ask us to perform most often. Plus, afterwards we get to watch the drag shows, which are absolutely _fabulous!_ ” he said that last part a little too well, but he still received a laugh from the younger male beside him, “Aster, the Australian guy that works at the gym, is actually our drummer.”

 

“Well Mr. Frost you are just full of surprises. It’s just up ahead on the right.”

 

“Hiccup, my friend, we have only just scratched the surface,” he retorted, maneuvering  the car into the small parking lot and shifted into park close to the entrance, “Uh, thank you for the ride. It would have really sucked walking in that.”

 

“Not a problem at all,” Jack replied.

 

Hiccup unbuckled his seat belt and climbed out of the car before leaning back down, “I’ll see ya later. Thanks again.” He shut the door and took off toward his apartment.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is In the Next Room by Neon Trees. I always saw Jack as a showman. He is light on his feet and loves to have fun (obviously XD). He seems like the type of person who would sing and dance in front of his mirror. By the way, if you have never heard Chris Pine sing you are missing out.


	3. Chapte

It had been two weeks since Hiccup’s training with Jack had begun and needless to say, he was exhausted, utterly exhausted—between work-outs, therapy, classes, and homework, he was starting to feel the load that he carried. His muscles were sore, not as sore as a few days prier but nonetheless sore, since he was going to the gym four times a week. Even though Jack had told him that he didn’t need to rush and strain himself because he could end up hurting himself in the long run, be still found himself walking to the gym and continuing the work-out despite the bi-color haired man’s concern. He was thankful that Jack had begun to offer him a ride home every night afterwards or he would have probably collapsed on the sidewalk somewhere. Also, with the time he had been spending with the man, be grew to enjoy his company.

 

          Jack had the makings of a good friend. He was easy to talk to and always knew how to bring Hiccup out of a funk. He was always laughing and telling funny stories about this or that—mostly about crazy things that he had had the privilege of witnessing in the gym, but Hiccup would be lying if he said he wasn’t disappointed that he still didn’t know too much about him. But then again, he had not really shared too much about himself either, mainly idle conversation.

 

          Glancing over at the clock, Hiccup saw that it was close to noon. He sighed, wondering why he ever thought it was a good idea to wake up around 10 a.m. on his off day. He lied there in the living room on his plush couch with Toothless asleep on his abdomen still in his pajamas from the night before, a pair of dark gray shorts and a mossy green shirt. The apartment was silent save for the ticking of the clock and the sound of Astrid talking away in his ear.

 

“Hiccup,” she asked with a bit of annoyance, catching his attention, “did you fall asleep?”

 

The cinnamon haired man groaned into the phone that was pinned between his shoulder and ear, “No, I’m awake. I was miles away for a moment.”

 

“Hiccup, why did you even call me if you weren’t even fully awake? You know that I find that annoying when people do that to me.”

 

He ran his hand down the length of Toothless’s purring body and shifted on the couch some to make himself more comfortable. The black cat that rested on him lifted his head and meowed at him for disturbing his sleep before climbing down and prancing off somewhere. Hiccup scoffed at the animal and brought his attention back to the phone and switched ears, “I’m sorry. I had just realized that I hadn’t talked to you in a few days… so…” he trailed off.

 

Astrid sighed and put Hiccup on speakerphone. She had been leaning back in her bed wearing nothing but her blue lace push-up bra and matching panties. Hiccup had caught her as she entered her room fresh out of the shower and she didn’t see a problem with answering the phone while she dressed, but she soon found herself in an almost one-sided conversation while her friend on the opposite end was in dreamland. She rolled her eyes and sat up in her bed and took the towel that wrapped her freshly showered blonde hair up off and tossed it casually to the side. She figured she might as well start getting ready for work while she talked to her friend, “So, how is class? Did you ever figure out your major or are you still bullshitting around?”

 

          “Bullshitting?” he asked offensively, sitting up, “I wasn’t bullshitting and yes, I think I do have it figured out.”

 

Astrid snickered. Hiccup was always so serious, “Well, O’ Great Sourpuss, what are you majoring in?”

 

Hiccup deflated back down onto the plush grey cushions under him, “I am going to major in engineering, but that is pretty much because I know I will find work and probably have a minor in creative writing. I thought about having a minor in art, but I think creative writing is more down my alley. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll write something I feel like I could probably get published.”

 

The girl on the other end of the receiver hummed in acknowledgement and began towel-drying her long blonde hair and finally tossing the towel into the hamper, “At least you have that much figured out. I am still having trouble with what I want to do when I start college. I don’t know if I want to get into animal care or be a physical therapist,” she stated as she pulled her work uniform shirt out of her top dresser drawer and pulled it over her head.

 

          Hiccup could hear the sounds of things being shuffled around as Astrid slipped into her black work slacks and his brow crinkled in curiosity, “And you sit there and talk about me not knowing what I wanna do with my life,” he retorted, “and what the hell are you doing? Sounds like Stormfly knocked over a bookshelf!”

 

Astrid chuckled as she looked over at her purebred collie, Stormfly, who laid silently on the hardwood floor, obviously used to the noises her owner made, “No, that’s me, I am getting ready for work. I had just gotten out of the shower when you called and I was tired of sitting here in my bra and underwear.”

 

          “Well, it’s good to know you changed them today?”

 

          The blonde scoffed, “Hey! I change them every day!” she said with a fake offensive tone.

 

          Hiccup shook his head, “Anyways, so, how have things been in Berk?”

 

          “Well, it hasn’t been too bad lately. According to Snotlout, Dagur hasn’t been asking about you as much and when I saw him last he didn’t really bother me, so, yeah…”

 

Sven “Snotlout” Jorgenson, Hiccup’s cousin, was friends with Dagur. He never understood why his cousin would ever want to be around his ex, let alone _look up to him_. Then again, Hiccup was able to count his blessings that Snotlout was completely unaware of the abuse he suffered while with his crazy ex. But it had almost made him sick to his stomach to know that Dagur and his cousin were friends now. He didn’t want anybody knowing the details of his and Dagur’s relationship or that there was ever a relationship in the first place.  

 

          “Well, that’s good. Maybe he will forget about me and move on. I mean, he couldn’t have possibly expected _Brother Hiccup_ to remain latched to his side forever, right,” he asked, rhetorically with a pinch of sarcasm, “I mean I would be lying if I said that I didn’t miss him sometimes, even though I have no reason to, but I know that it would have been the biggest mistake of my life to stay…”

 

          Astrid stood silent for a moment before pacing across the floor, her bare feet smacking on the wooden panels, back to her neatly made bed, where her phone lied, and retrieved the device and took him off speakerphone, bringing the device to her ear. She hated hearing her best friend speak about Dagur in that tone. She knew the type of things Dagur had done to him and made him do and for Hiccup to show any fathom of remorse for him was unacceptable. She didn’t want to snap at him for being honest, but she also didn’t want him having guilt for leaving the deranged male behind. Hiccup seemed happier since he moved from Berk, almost like he had started to be his old self again, a part of him she silently missed dearly.

 

          All she could do was sit back and try to help him through it as much as possible—be a shoulder to cry on, an ear to listen, or to just _be_ there. She sighed and sat back down on the bed and pressed her back to the backboard, bringing her knees to her chest, “At least you have accepted this. Being with him would only make your life worse. You would have remained unhappy… or worse.”

 

Stormfly came to her feet and shook her fur before gracefully walking over to her owner and climbed onto the bed. The dog could tell by the sound of Astrid’s voice that she wasn’t happy and that was something she didn’t like. Humans could be miserable creatures at times and Stormfly felt it to be her noble duty to have as little of that at all costs. The blonde stroked her companion’s soft, fluffy fur as she lay at her side, giving a weak smile.

 

From the other end Hiccup, too, was silent. He hated feeling things, especially when it involved Dagur. The man had pretty much singlehandedly ruined his existence. At times the auburn haired lad felt absolutely ridiculous for giving these thoughts and feelings the time of day, but if he didn’t acknowledge them they would continue to niggle his thoughts. Hiccup sat up once more and exhaled heavily, “Yeah, I do know this. I was so tired of being afraid as well. I won’t lie, when I first came here for school I was looking over my shoulder a lot. I was constantly thinking that no matter where I was, he would find me. He was going to be around every corner, he was going to walk out of the next stall in the restroom, and he was going to see me through the window while I was in class. I hated that feeling, Astrid. I was also scared that I would have to live with that fear for the rest of my life. That was the whole reason I started therapy… well not the sole reason, but one of the main ones.”

 

Astrid hated when Hiccup was like this. She knew that he was still adjusting and wanted to help him and did. She did not hesitate when he asked her to help him move. Even though she would have a great distance between them, it was better to have him away in Burgess than there in Berk within Dagur’s reach. At least with the six hour distance between them it was less likely of an unwanted run in and the unnecessary drama that would be plausible. Hiccup spoke once more, but his voice had grown softer, “Astrid, I believe the Gods must hate me.”

 

“Don’t say that,” she countered, “You know that is not true.”

 

“Oh?” he asked in a snide tone, “Well, if you don’t believe so let me reassess—I have lost my mother, my father doesn’t want to have anything to do with me because of my appearance, I was in an abusive relationship with a psychopath which put me through unspeakable horrors, and I had to move six hours away from my best friend. I would say that I am not in their favor, Astrid.”

 

The blonde girl brought her feet to the floor once more and began pacing around the room as Hiccup proceeded to rant. She rolled her blue eyes and sighed, “Hiccup, I know all of these things, but if you recall, you have become a better person because of these things and you are also trying to better yourself. You have a real shot at a future. You are in therapy. You are attending a gym and working with a personal trainer and you are meeting new people. Yes, you were dealt shitty cards at first, but you still haven’t let that change who you really are. You shouldn’t be too hard on yourself. You are not a failure or a lost cause, Hiccup.”

 

“What new people have I met? I haven’t really met anyone besides Jack,” he retorted.

 

“Exactly. By the way, how have things been going with the training?” she asked, changing the subject.

 

The mentioning of Jack made his chest become tighter. There was something about the bi-color haired guy that was alluring. He didn’t know the man too well, but he couldn’t say that he didn’t want to learn more about him either. A small smirk was traced on his lips as he came to his feet. Hiccup walked into the kitchen where he had begun to hear Toothless shuffling around, trying to tell his lazy owner to feed him and Hiccup knew it would only be a matter of time until Toothless started to wreck the place, a bad habit the feline possessed, “Pain… love it,” he quipped as he began as he poured the black cat’s favorite food into his silver dish that sat in the corner, Toothless weaving in and out of his legs and meowing loudly until the full dish was placed back on the ground, “Well, it is going alright. I am incredibly tired. Last week my body was so sore I thought I was going to keel over at any second.”

 

Astrid again put the device on speakerphone and started brushing her slightly damp golden hair, “Sounds like he is really working you hard,” she chimed adding a small laugh.

 

“It’s mainly from the fact that I have not worked out in so long. It’s not like I ever had a problem with being over-weight and the only exercise I ever do is walk,” he replied as he made his way back to the couch and flopped back down with a small ‘oof’.

 

“Well, a body at rest stays at rest. You are just now waking it up for the first time in forever. I wonder what you are gonna look like all buff… I think I will miss the little fishbone Hiccup,” she said, words dripping with her mirth.

 

“Oh har har. Astrid has jokes. Yes, I can see the before and after pictures now,” he replied dully.

 

“Oh lighten up, I am just playing with you. So, tell me about this trainer of your’s. Is he cute?”

 

Hiccup felt his cheeks heat up. Yes, Jack was handsome, very handsome. Why did he feel so awkward when it came to questions like that? It was almost as if he was ashamed to admit he thought another human being was good-looking, most likely because of his poor self-confidence and the thought that no one would ever say such things about him. After a moment he realized he hadn’t said anything and tried to speak, only to have himself stammer like an idiot, “Uh, why, uu-uh… why are you asking me that?” he asked. He could almost see her smirk through the phone.

 

“Oh, for fuck’s sake Hiccup. It was just a question. It’s not like I am asking you what his junk looks like,” she said as she began to skillfully French braid her thick blonde hair. Astrid had done this so many times over the years she hardly had to watch what she was doing anymore.

 

Hiccup sighed, “Ugh, fine. He is pretty good looking. Really good looking in fact.”

 

“See, was that so hard? You know for a gay guy you act like you are scared to say a guy is cute,” she said, tying her hair and gave it one last look over.

 

“I never said I was gay. I could be bisexual. I don’t know. I have never been with a woman.”

 

Astrid shook her head, “Wanna have sex sometime and find out?” This made Hiccup choke over his own words. He didn’t really know what to say to that. Granted, he and Astrid had been friends for years and he trusted her with his life and at one point he could say that he did have an infatuation with the girl with the pigtails he used to play with and even now, he still loved her dearly. Hiccup and Astrid had that type of friendship that it was perfectly fine to lay on top of each other or cuddle while watching a movie and there wouldn’t be any romantic tension between them.

 

Hiccup loved Astrid so much that he couldn’t ever picture his life without her again. The day she moved from Berk was the one of the saddest days of the auburn haired lad’s life—save for the day his mother died. Her parents were going through a nasty divorce and she was forced to move away with her father, which may explain why she was a bit of a tomboy. It had been almost ten years until she came back to Berk and it was as if their friendship picked right back up from where it had left off.

 

Hiccup thought for a moment more of the proposal, “I am tempted. Tell you what, next time we see each other, we’ll see what happens,” he said with a satisfying smirk.

 

“Alright and if we aren’t married by the time we are thirty, I think we need to marry each other,” she said, “I am completely serious too.”

 

Hiccup let out a hearty laugh, “Marriage? Now why would you want to marry an awkward, nasally voiced, freckled fishbone like myself?”

 

Astrid smiled into the phone, “Because, Mr. Hamish Horrendous Haddock III, you are one of the sweetest guys I have ever met, even though at times you can be awkward. You have stuck up for me and have been there for me because you are a very caring person. I trust you more than anybody else in this world and I want you to know that. I love you a lot and I don’t care if you are gay or not. Our marriage doesn’t have to have sex in it, you being there is enough, and sex would just be an added bonus.”

 

Hiccup felt his cheeks heat up more. He felt the same way as Astrid did. He had just never heard her say it. His friendship with her was pure and it was something that a lot of people would never have the privilege of experiencing. He did love Astrid and if he could ever see himself with a woman it would be with her. Even though the love he felt for her wasn’t in a romantic way, it was still just as genuine, “Thank you, Astrid. I think that that is one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me,” he replied, giving a crooked grin into the phone.

 

“You’re welcome and I meant every word. Plus, I happen to like your freckles and nasally voice,” she chirped, “I think it’s even better when you sing,” she giggled.

 

The cinnamon haired man rolled his eyes, “Ugh, if you say so.” 

 

“Now, what are you going to do about Jack,” she asked.

 

Hiccup cocked a brown eyebrow, “Uh, what do you mean ‘do about Jack’?”

 

Astrid exhaled in frustration, “Hiccup, what do you think I mean? Are you going to pursue him or not?”

 

Hiccup ran his fingers through his hair, “I don’t know. I mean, it’s not that simple. For one, I don’t know him that well and two, I don’t even know if he swings that way, and three, I don’t want to make things awkward between us.”

 

“Hiccup,” the blonde said firmly, “You will never get anywhere if you don’t try. I’m not telling you to run up to the guy and ask him on a date. All I am asking is if you think he would be someone you would like to have in your life, relationship or not.”

 

He let out a sigh, “I don’t know. Like I said, I don’t know him too well. All I know is that he has an amazing singing voice, he has two different colored eyes, one blue and one brown, and he seems really nice and patient too.”

 

“Well, maybe you should ask him to hang out sometime that isn’t in the gym. Why don’t you ask him on a man-date? Ya know, go the movies or come over and play video games, or whatever guys find interesting,” she said, slipping on her work shoes.

 

“Man-date?”

 

“Yeah, a man-date. Also, get a picture of him. I want to see what he looks like,” she said.

 

Their conversation was interrupted when Astrid heard the loud beeping of a car horn coming from her driveway. She walked over to her bedroom window and peered out of the blinds to see Raquelle “Ruffnut” Thorston’s purple 2003 Niisan Altima in her driveway. Since Astrid lived down the street from the twins, Ruffnut and her brother Taren (Tuffnut), she often car pulled with the female twin since they worked together at the same department store.

 

“I’m sorry, Hiccup, but Ruff is here. I’ll talk to ya later,” she said, sounding a bit disappointed.

 

“It’s all good. I think I may go back to sleep,” he replied, “Talk to ya later.”

 

“Don’t forget to get a picture!” she exclaimed and hung up.

 

 

That next morning, Jack found himself perched at his usual spot on the roof of the gym. He sat with his legs and bare feet hanging over the side of the building as he watched the city come alive. Jack reached into the pocket of his blue hoodie and pulled out a cigarette and lighter. He placed the white filtered stick between his lips and lit the end then placed the lighter back into his pocket before grabbing the filter and exhaled the smoke as he pulled it away from his mouth. Jack wasn’t what you would call a normal smoker. The only time he did was when he was stressed out, really bored, or in a social setting. He could go weeks at a time without craving one and a pack would last for a long time.

 

He normally tried to not smoke, when he did, around Aster or North. He would get the standard lecture about how they were bad for you and caused cancer. Even though he knew this, at least he could say that it was really his only bad habit. He didn’t drink, but on incredibly rare occasions, he didn’t do recreational drugs, he didn’t go out and have a bunch of unprotected sex, or get mixed up with the wrong crowd and had a life of crime.

 

But it did make him feel good that he had people watching over him and that they did care enough about him to say something. Jackson saw his boss, Nicholas St. North, as his adopted father and Aster as the brother he never had. He was close to both of them and would do anything he could for them, no questions asked. Since Jack had lost his parents at the age of 10 due to a car accident, North became the father figure that he had needed. He met the man while living in the Burgess Home for Boys when he was fourteen.

 

Jack remembered the day as if it had just happened. He recalls being in the library of the orphanage barefoot and laying on the hardwood floor. He heard the previous day from the head of the orphanage that Santa was coming to visit the children. He knew that “Santa” had arrived from the uncontrollable screaming that filled the building. He lay by his lonesome in the library, not really filling the Spirit of Christmas. Jack was still a brunette then and much older than the other children that dwelled in his so-called “home”, in fact he was the oldest one there.

 

He remembered how lonely he felt knowing that nobody wanted to adopt him. Nobody wanted to raise a teenager. Parents wanted a young child that they could mold into what they believe is the perfect child, not a teenager that they would only have for a few years and would probably disappoint them. His heterochromatic eyes stared at the ceiling, filling with tears before gradually spilling over and running down the side of his face and into his brown hair.

 

He wanted to be happy with his sister and a new family. He wanted to live a normal life, be angry that his new parents wouldn’t let him out to see his friends, but he knew that would never happen. His sister was gone. He was alone, but he was no longer scared, just sad.

 

Christmas wasn’t always a sad time for him. No, he used to dream of Christmas morning when his parents were still alive. Waking up a dawn, just as the sun slowly began to peek over the horizon. Running down the stairs to the large living room where the tree had remain brightly lit all night, but the once empty spaces now filled with wrapped boxes and the stockings were filled with candy as if by magic. Now it lay as a painful reminder of the family he would never see again or hope to have. The sounds of cheering, laughing and shuffling of what Jack assumed to be Christmas presents being torn open could still be heard from downstairs. He wished he still held the childish wonder and hope, but it faded away from him as most things seemed to have done.

 

After a while, the noise had moved outside where the children had more open space to play. The sound of heavy footfalls began to make their way gingerly up the stairs. Whoever it was had made their way into the library where Jack had remained on the floor, not bothering to look at the newest addition to the room.

 

“Merry Christmas!” boomed a loud, unfamiliar voice. Jack slowly turned his head to see who the voice belonged to, even though he had pretty much figured it out the second he heard it, he supposed he may have been curious of what this year’s model of Santa looked like. The large man that stood across the room was dressed as Santa, but unlike any Santa he had ever seen in a mall, TV, or Christmas paraphernalia. This man wore a large red coat with black slacks and a Russian style black hat. He sported a large brown and red bag that Jack figured once held the presents, but now was nearly empty, over his shoulder.

 

The man did however have the stereotypical long, white beard that Santa was so well known for having. He approached Jack with a bit of caution as he sat the bag down on a nearby table, “I noticed that you were not with the others,” he spoke, this time softer, in a thick Russian accent, “I figured I would bring you your gift personally.”

 

Jack only stared at the man for a moment before sitting up and coming to his feet. He shook his head and sighed, watching as the man retrieved a decent sized package from the bag that was neatly wrapped in blue shimmering paper with prints of snowflakes, and proceeded to hand it to the young boy, “Look, uh, Santa, no offense, but I think I am a little too old for this, don’t you think? I mean, it’s nice of you to do this for the kids, but I am not much into the whole Christmas thing. So, thanks… but no thanks.” With that said, Jackson made his way towards the library exit, but was stopped when a large hand landed on his shoulder.

 

“You are never too old for joy, son,” he stated in his low baritone voice.

 

Jack shook the man’s hand away and glanced over his shoulder, “Maybe not, but I lost my reason for joy and happiness a long time ago.” Then he left the room, leaving the man standing there.

 

Later that night, when he returned from dinner, the package that “Santa” tried giving him earlier was sitting on his bed. Obviously at this point there was no way of returning the present to the man who placed it there. He let out an exasperated sigh and sat down on his bed and proceeded to tear the paper from the box away, throwing it haphazardly onto the floor to reveal a plain brown box. When he opened it inside there were all sorts of things within—a new iPod, an assortment of candy, and a few other miscellaneous things. He couldn’t help the smile that crept onto his face. Jack had never had anybody do something so nice for no reason.

 

A few weeks later, as Jack walked the grounds of the Boy’s Home wrapped in an old brown poncho, the snow crunching under his worn sneakers, he was approached by the man that was once dressed as Santa. He was wearing the same large red coat and fluffy black Russian style hat. Jack saw him coming as he sat down on the swing that hung from a large tree branch, “Good to see you again,” he greeted, his accent coating his words.

 

Jack merely nodded. The man sat down in a wooden chair that was close by, the young brunet was almost positive that the chair would collapse under the man’s weight, but was surprised when it didn’t.

 

“Did you like your gifts,” he asked with a bright smile that was somewhat hidden under his beard.

 

“You know, you didn’t have to do that,” he said flatly.

 

The man laughed boisterously, “I know this. I do it because I wanted to.”

 

Jack hummed in acknowledgement, “Why are you here? Isn’t it a little late for a visit from Santa?”

 

The white haired man nodded, “Well, my friend, under circumstances you can call me North.”

 

The brunet chuckled wryly, “Seriously, as in the North Pole?”

 

The man let out another booming laugh, “No, as in Nicholas St. North,” he replied.

 

The brunet eyed the man over his curious name, his eyebrow cocked slightly before he let out another small, weak laugh, “Jackson. Jackson Overland-Frost,” he stated, earning a white smile from the large man.

 

“Jack Frost? Ah, my favorite winter spirit. The bringer of joy and fun to the children.”

 

Jack scoffed and rolled his eyes, “More like the bringer of messes where ever he goes. So why are you here, _North_?”

 

North shifted in the chair, “I didn’t come here to ask if you like presents. I come here because when I see you, I see myself. We are not as different as you may think.”

 

The young lad crossed his arms, “Really,” he asked sarcastically, “and why is that?”

 

“Because,” North stated firmly, “I know what it is like to lose my family too. To feel the stabbings of life’s cruel knife. To feel as if the universe is playing some sick joke and you are the brunt of it. I know these things too, Jack Frost. You are not alone.”

 

Jack came to his feet and started pacing around, North following him with his icy blue eyes. The weight of the man’s words had definitely caught his attention. He wasn’t exactly sure how to digest the words or know where to take this information or understand why the man shared this with him to begin with. However he did have one question, “So, how did you know about my family,” he asked meekly.

 

The smile he once sported returned to his bearded face, “I am Santa Claus, no? I see you when you sleep and I know when you are awake. I also know if you have been bad or good,” he replied, earning an honest and hearty laugh from the young man. That was the last thing Jack was expecting North to say. The boy shook his head and turned away from the man for a moment, composing himself before coming back to the swing where he once perched.

 

 He wiped a tear that had formed in his eye away. He leaned against the rope on the swing he was on, “So, am I on the naughty list,” he asked with a smirk, deciding to play along.

 

North leaned back in his seat, “ _On_ naughty list? You hold the record,” he replied gesturing to the young lad, “but now we are wiping clean slate.” It was at this time that the robust man pulled up the sleeves on his coat, revealing a large black inked tattoo that said ‘NAUGHTY’ along with some intricate designs surrounding it on his right arm and ‘NICE’ on his left with the same intricate designs, and proceeded to brush his right arm for effect.

 

Jack’s eyes widened at the tattoo. That was one of the last things he expected to see. He smiled and looked back up at North, “How come?”

 

North pulled his sleeves down and came to his feet. His expression changed to one of caring and understanding which also held wisdom, “Because even Jack Frost, the lonely and mischievous Spirit of winter, the bringer of joy to the children of the world, even he deserves to see happiness too.”

 

Jack carded his fingers through his brown locks and averted his gaze for a moment, “So, what happens from here?”

 

North smiled, “I do not know just yet, but for now I am taking you to get some new clothes.”

 

“New clothes,” he asked, “what’s wrong with my clothes I have?”

 

North shook his head and chuckled, “Nothing is wrong with them, but it is never a bad thing to get more, no?”

 

It was true. Ever since Jackson had come to the Home he had pretty much been living off of hand-me-downs. It wasn’t like it was a bad thing, he found himself lucky to have _anything_ to call his own. He hadn’t own anything new since his parents were alive. He shrugged and figured what harm could it do. The man seemed nice and was offering to buy him new clothes. Obviously he had been talking to the head of the Home to know as much about him as he did and since the head of the Home had been standing at the window watching them for the majority of the conversation, he knew that North was there and hadn’t stopped him yet. So, he must have approved the visit.

 

He learned a lot about North that day. He learned that for years, while in Russia, the man worked a regular 9 to 5 job and had a wife named Natasha and a daughter, Lana. He told Jack wonderful memories he had with them and spoke of how much he loved them both. He had told Jack that when his daughter was still young his wife was to have a small procedure, but something had gone wrong and she never woke up. He told Jack that it was only a few short years later that his daughter had become really sick. She was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of eleven. He told Jack how she eventually lost the battle after four years.

 

Jack really felt sorry for North. The man has lost his wife and daughter. He wasn’t given a break like Jack was. All Jack knew what that he was in the car with his parents and the next he was in the hospital. He didn’t see his parents die. There was nothing he could do to save them. They were already gone before he knew it. North on the other hand watched for four years as his daughter slowly died, trying to save her. Trying to find cures, treatments, anything to help her, but in the end it was all for naught. She was close to Jack’s age when she died close to Christmas, one night when in the hospital while her father read to her “Noch' Pered rozhdestvom” or “The Night Before Christmas”.

 

Jack found himself spilling tears for the man. His story was indeed a sad one; he told the brunet how it took him almost seven years before he was able to move forward with his life. How he didn’t want to remain living in a rut, but make something with his life. He told Jack how he knew his family wouldn’t have wanted him to live the way he was, they would have wanted him to thrive. He told Jack how a family friend of his, Manford “Manny” Moon, helped him buy a toy factory in Moscow and over the next 20 years, not only did his business become a success, he was able to buy Manny out, but was able buy three more factories as well, one in Berlin, one not too far from Burgess, and one in San Diego. He was even in the process of fixing up a gym.  

 

North had always wanted a family. He knew that the one he had could never be replaced, but he still longed for a child. He had money, yes, but he never let that change who he was. He figured the money he had made as nothing if he couldn’t share it with anybody. It took several months for him to build the courage to ask Jack how he would feel being adopted and becoming his son. Jackson couldn’t have been happier. All he ever wanted was a family and even though North wasn’t perfect, he had grown closer to him over the time he spent with him, “Nothing would make me happier,” he told him while flashing his beautiful pearly white teeth.  

 

Sadly, Jack wasn’t able to catch a break. For a long time, North tried to adopt him. He hired some of the best lawyers money could buy, but still he was unable to. That was actually how he met Aster. Aster was fresh out of law school, only lacking his bar exam, and was working for North’s lawyer. Aster spent a lot of time with North and Jack, trying to help out with building their case. 

 

But because of North’s hectic work schedule, him being single, and his traveling, the courts found that Jackson wouldn’t be in a suitable environment. They said that North’s absence due to working would mean Jack would be spending a lot of time either traveling with North or missing a lot of school or left alone. But North did not let that stop him. Until the age of 18, North continued to visit Jack as much as he could. He bought him anything he needed or wanted— clothes, a new laptop, shoes.  

 

And when Jack finally aged out of the system and was forced to leave the Home, North gave him a place to stay and offered him a job at the gym he had acquired. He even offered to pay for him to go to college, but Jack declined and told him maybe once he figured out what he wanted to do he would reconsider. Jack was very surprised that on his first day of work he found Aster there, perched behind the counter. When he asked the Australian man why he was there and not in his own law office, Aster explained to him that even after going through college and law school, it wasn’t until he actually got out into the “field” that he realized he was way over his head. He thought he could handle the weight of being a lawyer, but it was just something he could no longer see himself doing. Aster told Jack that North had also offered him a comfortable position in the gym and he had told the Aussie if he ever needed anything not to be afraid to ask.  

 

That was over two years ago. Even now, despite all that had happened, he wouldn’t change a thing should the opportunity arise. Jack saw North as his new father and nothing could change that. Ever since the man came into his life, his attitude about the world had changed. Before he met him, Jack was always sad, grumpy, and would play repugnant pranks on the other children in the Home. After meeting him, he seemed to have changed, in his opinion, for the better. North and Aster and even living in the Burgess Home for Boys taught him a lot about life, things you can’t learn from books.  

 

These men have helped him through some of the hardest times of his life and the way he saw it there was never enough he could do to thank them. Even though he no longer lived with North he was happy he got to see him almost every day. 

 

“There he is! Jack Frost!”

 

Jack was snapped from his thoughts and looked below to the parking lot to see North standing there looking up at him. He put out his cigarette and smiled down at the robust man, “Hey there, North.” 

 

“Jack, why are you always on roof,” boomed North, his accent lacing his words. 

 

“I’m just waiting for the time to pass,” he shouted down to the white haired man, earning an avid chuckle. 

 

“Come down, I have to discuss things with you.” 

 

Jack nodded and scooted backwards until his legs were back on the roof and he came to his feet. He grabbed his shoes and slipped them on before heading to the ladder and climbing down and entering the back door that he had left propped open. Inside he found North in the front at the counter. The robust man smiled at him as he approached the front desk, “What’s up, North?” 

 

North plopped down in the computer chair, “You have been on roof these past couple of mornings, is everything alright?” 

 

Jack rubbed at the back of his neck out of habit and shrugged, “Yeah. Well as far as I know.” 

 

“Do not patronize me, I know you better than that,” he affirmed solemnly, “you stay on roof when things are on your mind.” 

 

“It’s nothing really, North. I suppose I am stressing over the gig we have coming up,” he conjectured. It was a lie, well, not a complete lie, but it also wasn’t the full truth. Jack did have other things on his mind. He wasn’t sure why, but he kept finding himself thinking about a certain auburn haired person. He wasn’t sure if it was from the excitement from having someone to hang around him on those late boring nights or if it was just him in general. But needless to say, Hiccup had indeed been infiltrating his thoughts as of late. 

 

Jack would be lying if he said that he didn’t notice the way the light shined on his brown hair revealing the most brilliant red highlights he had ever seen. The way his dark viridian eyes reflected his hardships, but still held a sense of endearment or when he gets embarrassed, the way that light dusting of pink spreads over his freckled cheeks. He loved how Hiccup always seemed to have sarcasm rolling off his tongue about this or that. So, yeah, he couldn’t help but notice these things.  

 

“Will there be anything you need?”

 

 Jack smiled and shook his head and stuck his hands into his hoodie pockets, “No I think we are pretty good for the moment.” 

 

North cocked a black eyebrow, “Oh? Well, I will ask Aster. I know he will think of something.” 

 

Jack threw up his hands in surrender. He knew that arguing with North was something he could hardly ever win at, especially when it came to turn North down when he offered to help his band out with a gig. He never understood why the man did it, but whenever his band had a gig he always asked this and insisted on buying some miscellaneous things—new drum sticks, replacement guitar strings, or whatever things Aster could think up. It’s not like he was against him helping them out, but he felt bad when North bought them things they didn’t really need. He brought these concerns up with Aster and the Australian man would say to him was, “ _Well if he is willing to help us out then let him. He is doing this to be nice because he loves you like a son. He wants to help and it makes him feel like he is,_ and he is _, plus it’s not causing any harm_.”  

 

“Alright North. I’m sure he’ll think of something.” 

 

“Well, give me time, address, and date and I will be there. But for now, you are free to go. I see that you have done everything you can around here. Oh, that reminds me! How is new person you are training going?” he asked.

 

Jack smiled, “I’ll have to ask Aster when it is and leave it in your office. As for the guy I’m training, it’s going okay. I think I am wearing him out though,” he replied with a light laugh, “I have been taking him home afterwards because I’m afraid he’ll pass out if he has to walk that far after I’m done with him.” 

 

North laughed, “Well, we do not need that. Anyways, shoo. Go on home. You need rest before rehearsal. I have Dingle come in this afternoon so you can practice.”    

\+ +

 

Later that night as Hiccup made his way up to the gym, carting his gym bag close to his side, he already felt a bit tired, but he knew that he had to keep up with this regiment if he was ever going to progress in anyway. The past two weeks were indeed strenuous, but he found it easier if he just ignored it and kept moving forward. As he made his way across the walkway he felt nervousness creep through his body. Even though he didn’t technically agree to send Astrid a picture of his bi-color haired trainer, he also did want her to see him. The only problem is actually snapping the photo.  

 

Should he out right ask him? No, he might think he was some weirdo. But if he asked him he would then have to explain that he had been talking about him to Astrid. Then what if he would want to know why and he would have to explain that it’s because he said he was good-looking and Astrid wanted to know _how_ good-looking and to send her a picture. Then things would be awkward. Hiccup figured that he could lie, but immediately dismissed that idea. He was a terrible liar, like absolutely horrible at it. You would have to be completely dense or very gullible to believe one of Hiccup’s lies. Ever-so-often he could make a lie sound believable, but he tried not to risk it because most of the time he was caught. 

 

Letting out another sigh, he entered the building to see Jack and some girl talking. Jack leaned against the counter, his heterchromatic eyes on the young woman before him. She was very pretty. Her long black hair draped over her shoulder in a loose braid and her bewitching emerald eyes were fixed on his trainer. In Hiccup’s opinion she looked a lot like Astrid. She was obviously there to work out since she wore gym clothes—a tan tank top and really short black shorts.  

 

The two hadn’t noticed he had entered the building. He actually felt kind of awkward standing there, but for some reason was hesitant to interrupt them. It was obvious that the woman was flirting with Jack, she kept laughing at whatever he was saying and touching him as if it weren’t a big deal and Jack didn’t seem to care that much. Maybe he knew her? Hiccup sighed once more and figured he would just go ahead and change out and wait for his trainer to finish with… whatever he was doing.  

 

As he approached the two, trying to ease by unnoticed, their eyes locked onto him, “Hey Hiccup,” he heard the bi-color haired man chime. Hiccup looked over at him and gave a nervous smile and small wave. The girl standing beside Jack looked at Hiccup as if he was so rude for interrupting their conversation before turning back to the trainer. Jack looked at her before turning his attention back to the auburn haired lad that stood by awkwardly chewing on his lip, “This is Heather. Heather, this is Hiccup. I’ve been training him for the past couple of weeks.” 

 

“Hiccup?” she asked, “Not a name you hear every day, but they say that a person’s name tells a lot about them.” 

 

Hiccup shrugged, “’Heather’. Very common, very boring, normally the name you hear when you see a trio of drunk college girls that are holding back their friend’s hair while she vomits in the bushes.” he stated with a bit of venom, gesturing to her. ‘ _Where did that come from_?’ 

 

She scoffed and turned back to Jack, “Well, I suppose I gotta be going.” 

 

Heather peered over at Hiccup before bring her attention back to Jack. She pulled him into a tight embrace which, much to Hiccup’s surprise, Jack returned. She stood on her the tip of her toes to match his height and gave him a kiss on the cheek, “I’ll see you later.” 

 

Hiccup could feel the tightness that was already filling his chest become tighter. Why? It wasn’t a big deal. Why did he care? Why was he angry? Very angry. Hiccup turned on his heels and marched off toward the locker room. He felt his face becoming red with frustration. ‘ _Of course he has a girlfriend! Why wouldn’t he?’_  

 

“Call me later,” he heard Jack tell the girl before disappearing into the locker room. 

 

After dressing out Hiccup went out to meet up with Jack who was waiting for him over at the stretching area. After stretching and warming up, they quickly went to work. Jack didn’t mention Heather any, which Hiccup was thankful for. He was already frustrated and hardly listened to anything Jack was saying anyways. In fact Hiccup was taking this time to let out said frustration, He grabbed a hold of the pull up bar and proceeded to pull himself up over and over. Yes, he was still struggling to do so, but that wasn’t stopping him. He kept going and going even when Jack asked him to stop. He said something along the lines ‘if you don’t relax you will end up hurting yourself’. 

 

Hiccup, after pulling up once more, dropped to his feet and looked over at Jack. His dark eyebrows were knitted together, his hair was matting down on his scalp, and his jaw was clinched. Ignoring Jack once more he walks to the opposite side of the room and picked up a barbell and began using it. Jack walked over to him, cautiously, he had never seen Hiccup like this before and it was kind of worrying him. It was obvious that something has him upset, but he didn’t think the younger man would tell him if he was to ask, but he figured it was worth a shot. 

 

“Hiccup,” he said, getting the boy’s attention, “are you alright? You seem a bit distracted.”

 

Hiccup’s eyes returned to the barbell and he grunted and he lifted it once more. ‘ _No, everything is okay. I just had my secret hopes crushed because I was stupid enough to hope for anything_.’ he thought—“I’m just peachy. Nothing to worry about here.” 

 

Jack cocked a dark eyebrow and nodded, “You sure? You’ve seemed kinda… out of it since you first came in tonight. Do you want to talk about whatever is bothering you?” Jack’s voice was filled with genuine concern. He didn’t like seeing anybody that way, let alone someone he was trying to help. 

 

Hiccup wished he felt the same way, but at the moment he didn’t and for some reason it pissed him off more that Jack had asked him if he wanted to talk about it. Hiccup looked over at him with a blank expression that soon turned into an angry one. He dropped the barbell he had in his hand, it crashed to the ground with a loud ‘BANG’, Jack slowly backed up to give him some space. Hiccup looked at him, “No, I _do not_ want to talk about it,” he said, seething, stepping over the barbell, “I’m going to take a break.” And with that he stormed away from Jack and back to the locker room.  

 

When the door to the locker room shut behind him Hiccup immediately began to feel awful about what he had done. Granted, he was pissed, but he didn’t really know why. He didn’t have a reason to be. So what if Jack had a girlfriend? It’s not like they were friends either. He was Hiccup’s trainer and nothing more. Hiccup walked over to the lockers and laid his forehead onto the cool surface, “Fuck…” he whispered as the reality and gravity of the situation began to dawn on him, resisting the urge to smack his head against the locker, “I really messed up.” Hiccup assumed whatever friendship they were forming was now out the window. 

 

Hiccup was still astonished how angry he had gotten over nothing. Normally when he was angry he didn’t act like that, he would fume, yes, but not act like a complete ass. He released a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding and opened his locker and grabbed his phone. He shut his locker and walked out of the locker room and made his way to the front entrance, not bothering to figure out where Jack was at that moment. As he walked out he pulled up Astrid’s number and called her only to have her answer a moment later, “Hiccup?”

 

Her voice sounded gruffer than normal from where she most likely had been woken up, “It’s almost 2 a.m. is everything alright?”

 

“Astrid, I fucked up. I think Jack may hate me now,” he said, almost panicked 

 

“Wait, what? What happened?” 

 

“He has a girlfriend, Astrid. Okay, it all started when I first got here. I went inside and he was talking to some girl and she looked at me like I was a nuisance and she was like all over Jack. And I don’t know, she hugged him and kissed him and the next thing I know I am so angry. I don’t know why. I don’t know this guy well enough to be like this. Then I ended up snapping at him for no reason and threw a barbell and now I’m on the phone with you,” he explained, exhaling a deep breath. 

 

Astrid was quiet for a moment, trying to take this all in. She cleared her throat and sat up in her bed, “First off, Hiccup, you are over reacting. Secondly, you don’t know if this girl is in fact his girlfriend. I mean did he say that’s who she was? And thirdly, it’s okay to be jealous. You like the guy.” 

 

Hiccup tensed up. He knew she was right even though he wouldn’t admit he it that he was jealous, “No he didn’t say it was his girlfriend, but Astrid, they looked pretty close to me, And who ever said I was jealous? I’m not jealous.” 

 

Astrid groaned in frustration, “Hiccup look at mine and your friendship, then look at that, what is the difference? Probably not a lot. And yes you are too jealous, because if you weren’t I wouldn’t be on the phone with you right now, I would still be asleep. Now, get your ass back in there and _apologize_ and _get me my picture_.” 

 

He winced at the phone as Astrid’s frustrated words rang against his eardrum. He knew she was right. He looked through the large windows and saw that Jack had taken his post at the front counter. He had a worried expression on his face and that made Hiccup feel even worse, “Okay, fine. You win. What am I going to say when I go back in there? I’m not good at lying.” 

 

The blonde was quiet for a moment. She hummed in thought before speaking up again, “Well, you don’t really need to say anything, but if you want to explain yourself then just tell him you are fighting with your dad,” she suggested.  

 

“Thanks. I guess I’ll go back in there now,” he added in a mundane tone, getting a ‘good luck’ from his friend before she said, “Don’t forget my picture!” and hung up. 

 

Hiccup remained outside for a few minutes so he could practice what he was going to say. After taking in a deep breath and slowly exhaled it he walked back to the entrance and went inside. As he entered he looked to the front desk to see that Jack had vanished. Hiccup had heard the door creaking from the back of the gym so he followed the noise figuring it was his best bet to where his trainer had gone off to.  

 

As he made his way to the back, Jack reappeared from behind the door, actually startled by not expecting to see Hiccup standing there, and gave a blank stare. Neither of them knew what to say, well Hiccup did, but he seemed too have lost the ability to speak at the moment. Jack pursed his lips as he stared at the auburn haired man before him and narrowed his eyes. But just as Hiccup opened his mouth to speak Jack held his hand up, stopping him, “Come with me,” was all he said, motioning his hand, before disappearing behind the door once more.  

 

Hiccup reluctantly followed him through the storage room out the back door that had been propped open. He was curious as to where his trainer was taking him but remained silent. Once outside, being greeted once more by the cool autumn air that chill his exposed arms and allowed him to see his breath, Jack turned to Hiccup and held his hand out toward the building.

 

Hiccup followed the hand and noticed that there was a small ladder and he turned back to Hiccup, “Go on,” he said, his thin lips curled into a smirk.

 

‘ _What the hell…_?’—“Why do you want me to go up there?” he asked. 

 

“Not afraid of heights are you?” 

 

“No,” the younger male retorted, “I just don’t know why you are wanting me to go up some rickety ass ladder.” 

 

Jack rolled his eyes, “I’m not going to throw you off the building if that’s what you are thinking. Plus, I go up this ladder almost every day and it hasn’t collapsed yet.” 

 

Hiccup scoffed, “Well thank you for that piece of relieving information.” 

 

Jack’s hand fell to his side, “You will be fine. Just think of this as… a crazy trust exercise. If you want I’ll be behind you and if you fall I will catch you.” 

 

It was Hiccup’s turn to roll his eyes. He wanted to trust Jack. He didn’t think the man would do anything intentionally to hurt him, or at least he hoped not, “Fine,” he sighed, “but I better not die.” 

 

And with that Hiccup made his way up the ladder, Jack in tow. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t a bit concerned. That ladder did look really old. Once at the top, Hiccup stepped onto the roof and realized what a wonderful view there was. Even though it was dark, the street lamps revealed a part of Burgess he didn’t think was ever there. The city lights made it seem as if it were glowing. The serene silence was peaceful. Around this time there was hardly, if any, traffic. The sounds of a light wind and crickets were really the only noises.  

 

Hiccup jumped when he felt a hand land on his shoulder and looked behind him to see Jack smiling at him, “I come up here a lot. The view really calms me,” he told him as he made his way to the edge, “If I ever need to clear my head, a few hours on the roof helps me clear my head.” 

 

Hiccup approached the bi-color haired man, “Listen,” he began rubbing habitually at his neck, “I’m sorry about earlier. I, uh… was arguing with my dad,” he lied. 

 

Jack merely shook his head, “You don’t have to explain anything to me. I figured something was wrong way before you snapped at me.” 

 

Hiccup felt his cheeks heat up. He was actually very glad that they were I outside where it was darker so Jack wouldn’t see it. He felt bad for lying, but the truth would have been far more embarrassing, “I’m still sorry. It was really uncalled for.” 

 

“Apology accepted,” he said with a half-smile, “At least you have a parent to argue with. I lost that luxury a long time ago. I mean, I still kinda argue with my quote-unquote ‘adopted father’, North—the owner of this gym—but my biological parents, not so much.” 

 

Hiccup frowned, “I’m sorry.” 

 

“It’s not your fault,” he gave a weak smile that quickly vanished, “That’s how I got my blue eye. I was with them when they wrapped their car around a tree.” 

 

“I’m really sorry to hear that, Jack,” Hiccup said just above a whisper. He knew that pain all too well. He remembered Jack mentioning how he woke up from an accident and had a blue eye. He remembered the sad look on his face and how he quickly changed the subject. He understood now why he didn’t want to talk about it. He still had problems talking about his mother and she had died almost seven years ago. Except, in Hiccup’s case, it was not only the pain of losing his mother that hurt, it was the thought of how she would see him now after all that had happened that hurt him. 

 

“It’s okay. I have moved forward. I don’t think I’ll ever get over it, but I think I lived in the past long enough,” he said. 

 

“Um, Jack, if you don’t mind me asking… why are you telling me this?” 

 

“Isn’t that what friends do? They share things about themselves,” he answered with a flash of his pearly whites.  

 

“Friends?” 

 

“Well, that’s what I thought anyways,” this sounded almost like a question. 

 

Hiccup flashed him a crooked smile, “No, that sounds fine with me. I don’t have any friends in the area, but I also haven’t been here too long either.” 

 

Jacked chuckled, “Well, I’m glad to be the one to pop your ‘Burgess Friend Cherry’.”—‘ _Maybe I can pop another—wait what?’_ He thought, feeling his face flush, earning a laugh from Hiccup, “So, do you wanna give working out another go or do you wanna hang out up here for a bit?” 

 

Hiccup carded his fingers through his hair, “Well, we can give it another go, but would it be okay if I stayed up here for a bit longer?” 

 

Jack nodded, “Yeah, take as long as you need,” he said as he made his way to the ladder, but stopped in his tracks when he heard Hiccup call out to him. 

 

“You don’t have to go.” 

 

Jack’s smiled got bigger, “Alright,” he said coming back over to Hiccup and sat on the edge of roof. Jack looked up at him and patted the spot next to him. The auburn haired lad accepted the invitation and sat down next to the trainer. They stayed quiet for a while, just staring off into the distance before them, enjoying each other’s company. Hiccup stuck his hand into his pocket, trying to warm his hands some. Even though the cold didn’t really bother him since he was from Berk and they were known for their harsh winters. Hiccup often described Berk as being “twelve days north of Hopeless and a few degrees south of Freezing to Death”.  

 

Jack’s eyes stayed forward, though he was able to see Hiccup through his peripheral, he didn’t want to be caught looking at him. Even though Hiccup had apologized for his verbal tongue lashing earlier, he couldn’t help but wonder what really set him off. Jack was not a fool, he knew that Hiccup was lying when he said he was arguing with his father, but he chose to remain silent about it because he figured it was none of his business. He liked Hiccup, there was something about him that drew his attention to the young man, even though he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. He just knew that he definitely wanted to be friends with him.  

 

Hiccup seemed like the type of person who wasn’t really good at making friends. His self-esteem was low and his defenses seemed to always be up. Jack hoped that he would be able to help out with that. His self-esteem wasn’t always great, especially when he was younger. Maybe this was his way of paying it forward? North, Aster, and a few others helped him out; what better way of repaying it than helping someone else? 

 

As Hiccup sat quietly, he began to fiddle with his phone that was in his pocket. He rolled his eyes when he remembered that Astrid wanted a picture of Jack, _‘Great. How am I supposed to do this? He’s going to think I’m a creep for asking him for a picture.’_   Hiccup shifted slightly and angled himself a bit more towards the older man _, ‘Maybe if I act like I am playing with my phone I can snap a quick one.’_

 

Hiccup bit his lower lip as his unlocked the screen and pulled up his camera, slowing turning it in Jack’s direction. He was glad the parking lot lights were bright so he was able to see him on the screen. A small smile spread across his features as he pressed the button and snapped a picture. However, Jack could help but noticed the very bright flash from where the brunette forgot to shut it off. His head snapped to the direction and saw Hiccup looking at him with an ‘oh-shit’ look plastered across his face and his freckled cheeks glowing a bright pink, “I’m sorry,” he said softly. 

 

Jack’s grin returned, “Sneaky little thing, you. Didn’t even bother asking me,” he said with fake offense. 

 

“I’ll erase it. I just…” he groaned in frustration, “my friend. I was talking about you to my friend and she wanted to see what you looked like.” 

 

Jack shifted closer to the other male, “Well, are you sure your _friend_ wanted a picture of me or is it for your own private collection?” 

 

Hiccup rolled his eyes, “Don’t flatter yourself too much, Frosty. It’s not for me.”—‘ _Well, not for only me_ ’ “Frosty?” he asked before shaking the nickname off, “Well, I tell you what, how about I give you a more flattering angle? Ya know, since I now know that you are actually taking it now. Gimme your phone.” 

 

Jack held out his hand and Hiccup reluctantly handed the device over. He then moved closer to the smaller male and wrapped his arm around him. Hiccup shot him a look of confusion, “What are you doing?” 

 

“I don’t expect to be in the picture all by myself,” he replied, leaning in closer to Hiccup, their faces almost touching. The brunette felt his cheeks heat up more. He had never been this close to Jack. Hiccup could smell his scent; it reminded him of pine trees and a hint of peppermint. It was almost like he embodied winter itself. Hiccup wrapped his skinny arm around Jack’s shoulder and looked up at the camera before Jack hit the shutter button and a blinding flash erupted from the phone. But before he was handed his phone back, Jack snapped a quick selfie, “There, ya go. Wanna head on back in?” 

 

Hiccup nodded and shoved his phone back into his pocket and came to his feet, “Oh, one more thing.” 

 

Jack stopped and turned back to him, “Lemme guess, you want a kiss too?” 

 

“What?!” 

 

The two-toned haired man burst into a fit of laughter, “Oh, my god! Your face was priceless! Hahaha! I’m kidding, what’s up?” 

 

Hiccup was dumbfounded. He honestly was at a loss of words for a moment before composing himself, “I was wondering if you wanted to hang out sometime… you know… that’s not here. Like, I don’t know, a movie or something?” Hiccup knew he was obviously blushing. He was stumbling over his words like an idiot.  

 

“Sure, sounds like fun. I actually have a great place to go. What day did you have in mind?” 

 

Hiccup was quiet for a moment. He honestly didn’t think he’d get this far, “How about Thursday or Friday?” 

 

“Hmm, well, I have practice on Thursday, but you actually don’t live that far from Aster. I could give you the address and we can meet there or if you want I could just pick you up once I’m done. It’s really up to you,” he replied. 

 

“Would he be okay with you giving a total stranger his address?” he asked.

 

 Jack laughed, “I’ll tell him you are my date for the evening,” his dark eyebrows wagged at Hiccup whose face was glowing brilliantly at this point, “Relax I’m kidding. Are you always this serious?” 

 

“According to my friend, Astrid, yes,” he answered with a small shrug, “Well, let’s head in.”

 


	4. 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> date night!

The sounds of soft raindrops patted on the window as Astrid sat gazing at the glowing laptop screen before her. She was glad to be off of work that day, nothing but movies and TV shows, things she rarely got to enjoy anymore since she started working at the department store. She was trying to do the responsible thing and save up as much as she could before she started college next fall that way, in case something happened, she would be prepared. Astrid wasn’t as lucky as Hiccup, who got a full scholarship. She was intelligent and was therefore able to get grants, but that wasn’t going to stop her from working. Plus, a bit of spending money was never a bad thing.

 

Lately, Astrid had been burying herself in work since Hiccup had left. He was her closest friend and she had gotten used to him being around her since her return to Berk, now it felt dull without him around. She had begun to pick up shifts and would sometimes find herself working 14 hour days. It wasn’t until Ruffnut told her she needed to calm it down or she would end up burning herself out. Even though Astrid agreed with the female twin, it wasn’t until she almost passed out at work from exhaustion that she had decided to take her advice. Ruffnut had suggested she came over to Astrid’s house and they would chill in their pajamas, watch movies, and order pizza—just a regular lazy day.

 

So, that’s what they did. The two blondes had been laying across Astrid’s bed pretty much all day, only getting up for bathroom breaks, watching BBC’s Sherlock. Ruff would occasionally get lost and ask questions or give Astrid weird looks when she failed to get the jokes or didn’t understand what they were talking about. They had already made it through the first season and were now starting up the second.

 

Astrid sat up in the bed and shook her hair free from the braid that had remained there since yesterday. She looked over at the other girl who was staring intently at the screen. Astrid was actually rather fond of Ruffnut. They got along well and had a lot of the same interests seeing how they both weren’t very girly and enjoyed sports. She figured it was mainly because of Tuffnut that she acted the way she did. The two fit their nicknames very well. They were always fighting and punching each other or banging their heads against one another, for some odd reason that was never really explained. The two were also oddly in sync with one another. They both thought and acted a lot alike, but despite their rough exteriors they obviously cared about each other in their own weird way.

 

Astrid often thought about how it would be for them when they got older. Seeing how one would think, by the way they acted, that they were joined at the hip, how it would probably be heartbreaking if one of them when the other would finally move out and begin living a separate life. Astrid was amazed how even though Raquelle held interest in guys that they worked with or had met, she never really pursued them and she figured it may have something to do with the guilt of leaving her brother behind.

 

Even though Tuffnut would tease his sister about her looks, she was not ugly. Raquelle was very pretty, especially when she dressed up. Yes, Ruffnut, on a few very rare occasions had actually dressed up. In fact Astrid helped her get ready for their senior prom. It was unusual to see Ruff in an elegant pale blue dress with her waist long blonde hair actually out of those messy braids that she always had. Ruff was never one for wearing make-up and Astrid found it completely adorable that she had to help her friend with putting it on. But what was even better than that was when Tuff decided to make fun of her and despite the fact she was wearing heels, she was still able to chase him down and kick his ass.

 

Another reason Astrid never minded hanging out with her was because the twin never seemed to bother Hiccup like the rest of their classmates did. Sure, she did pick at him a little bit, but nothing more than playful banter.

 

Astrid felt bad about one incident she witness back in high school was when the twins decided to join her and Hiccup for lunch. They sat and ate and had casual conversation, but when things got quiet between them Taren decided it would be a good idea to have Raquelle ‘do her stupid Hiccup impression’.

 

Astrid felt so bad when Ruff started imitating Hiccup’s nasally voice and said things like, “ _Hello nice dragon! You can be my friend_.” and, “ _All of the dragons are my friends_.” She couldn’t help, but spit out her drink and laugh… _really_ hard. Poor Hiccup was always picked on as a child for his love of the mythical creature and it only got worse for him when he got into high school. He sat there with his face flushed a bright pink and a sour look. After a moment he finally mumbled how he didn’t sound like that. Even though she had apologized to him for laughing, Ruff actually did do a descent impression of him.

 

“Hey,” Ruffnut called out, snapping her fingers in front of Astrid’s face, bringing her attention back to the present, “are you even still watching this?”

 

“Yeah… well, kind of. I spaced out for a minute,” she replied honestly.

 

Ruff rolled over onto her back before sitting up, “Well, if you are bored we can always find something else.”

 

Astrid smirked, “What’s wrong? Having trouble following it?”

 

The female twin rolled her eyes, “No. I’m following it just fine. That one dude is a psycho and the doctor follows him around and blogs about him solving mysteries. Now the psycho and doctor are chasing an even bigger psycho who likes to kill people and strap bombs to them.”

 

Astrid laughed, “Close enough. Let’s take a break and we’ll finish up this season.”

 

Ruff nodded before rolling off the bed and prancing out of the room, stepping over Stormfly, who must have grown bored of the girl’s antics, and decided to lie in the hallway. But before proceeding to the bathroom she popped her head back in as Astrid crawled off the bed, “By the way, while you were being a space cadet your phone had vibrated several times,” and with that said she continued down the hall.

 

Astrid looked over at her side table where her phone laid and picked up the device and unlocked her screen and as she had guessed it was from Hiccup. She opened the message and saw that he had sent her two pictures and a big grin spread across her features. She opened the first attachment and her jaw nearly hit the floor. The first picture she had opened was the selfie that Jack had taken of himself. By the angle it was taken it seemed to be closer to his face. Jack had his head slightly cocked to the side and sported a mischievous smile, his perfectly whitened teeth gleaming from the flash. What truly caught the blonde’s attention were his eyes and the way they shined their brilliant polar opposite colors. She had never seen eyes like his.

 

She studied the soft contours of his slightly sun kissed face, noticing little things like how his cheeks held a light dusting of freckles and the way the corners of his eyes crinkled slightly and the shallow dimples that graced his features as he smiled. This man was positively gorgeous. She knew that Hiccup said he was very good looking, but never in her life did she expect to see this Adonis that displayed on her screen. The man was obviously ripped too. From the angle of the picture, she could see his white shirt that clung to his frame and how it exposed the firm shape of his chest.

 

“Oh, my gods,” she finally said after staring at the picture for what seemed like ever.

 

“What are you doing,” asked Ruffnut as she strolled back into the room, wiping her wet hands on her teal pajama pants.

 

Astrid glanced up as the other blonde joined her on the bed, “Hiccup just sent me a picture of his trainer. Look at him,” she replied pushing her phone towards Ruff.

 

The twin rolled her eyes and took the phone from Astrid. She unlocked the screen that had gone dark only to have the same jaw-dropping reaction Astrid did, “Holy shit!”

 

“I know!”

 

Ruffnut’s mouth curled into the goofiest smile Astrid had ever seen, “Me likey. Me likey a lot.”

 

Astrid couldn’t help but laugh. The look that Ruff had was absolutely priceless. She could practically see the stars in the female twin’s eyes as she gazed at the picture. Raquelle pulled up the second picture that was attached to the message and smiled, “Here’s one of him and Hiccup together,” she showed it to Astrid who gave a warm smile at the photo. Hiccup looked so adorable alongside Jack. They both had their arms draped over each other’s shoulders. It seemed like Jack was more comfortable in the picture instead of Hiccup who looked stiff and was obviously blushing even though they were both smiling, Jack’s looked more natural unlike Hiccup’s which looked at bit forced, but either way Astrid would have been lying if she said she didn’t think they looked cute together.

 

Astrid could see why he caught her friend’s attention, Jack was indeed handsome and from the way Hiccup spoke about him, very sweet as well. It was nice for Hiccup to have someone like that in his life. She knew that Hiccup was upset from his jealousy and became frustrated. She knew he acted irrationally about it too from what he had told her, but it seemed everything ended on a good note.

 

She could see that Jack must have overlooked it and forgiven him, otherwise she doubted she would have actually gotten a picture of him. Astrid really did hope that things went well with the two of them. Hiccup needed others in his life. He needed people who were accepting of him and didn’t judge him by appearance alone. She knew what life was like outside of Berk and how different people were beyond their old fashioned community. Hiccup, anywhere else, would be considered normal in stature, maybe a bit underweight, but not like a runt.

 

Ruffnut chuckled a bit, “You know, Hiccup looks kinda cute in this one as well. He’s still a bit scrawny, but still kinda cute.”

 

This caught Astrid’s attention, “Oh, really? Why didn’t you ever tell him that?”

 

Ruff shrugged and laid back, “I don’t know. I mean, I never thought he was ugly or anything. He wasn’t really one to catch someone’s eye at first I suppose. He never really bothered me or Tuffnut and we didn’t mind having him around, but he seemed to want to be by himself or with you or Dagur more than anybody else. He was always such as smartass though,” she explained.

 

Astrid cocked an eyebrow, “Yeah, he is a smartass. He always said it was one of his better qualities. Also, you didn’t really answer my question.”

 

Ruff scoffed, “Just because I didn’t think he was ugly doesn’t mean I needed to tell him. Who honestly goes up to someone and says, ‘hey, I don’t think you are ugly’. It’s pointless. That’s like telling someone that their clothes match,” she rolled onto her side, “It can do more harm than good because they will start to think about times that their clothes didn’t match and in this case, Hiccup would start thinking that other people found him unattractive.”  

 

Astrid was astonished. It wasn’t normal for Ruffnut to make this much sense, but she did have a point, especially since Hiccup already suffered from low self-esteem and poor body image. She nodded, “Well, I gotta hand it to you, you have a good point. By the way, I thought that Tuffnut didn’t like Hiccup.”

 

Ruff shook her head, “If he does he never said anything to me about it.”

 

“Then how come he threw that big trig book at him during our senior year,” she asked, tilting her head a bit to the side and furrowed her brows.

 

Ruffnut laughed and sat back up, “If you recall, he wasn’t aiming at Hiccup, he was aiming at me. Tuff can be a dick sometimes, but I do know that particular time he was aiming for me. I actually thought he broke Hiccup’s nose that day. I kinda felt bad for him. Hey I have a question, how come you and Hiccup never got together? I mean, you two were always together… well, with each other—except when he was hanging around Dagur.”

 

Astrid’s blue eyes widened. She was not expecting this question at all. Ruffnut, as far as she knew, didn’t know that Hiccup was actually with Dagur. As far as Astrid knew, Ruff saw them as friends and more or less figured they hung out to toughen Hiccup up. However his relationship with Astrid seemed to go beyond a “normal friendship”. In fact them being as close as they were is what made Dagur hate her so much. This was something she knew for a fact because Dagur had told her this to her face several times.

 

She never understood his jealousy towards her. He treated Hiccup horribly and wondered why he wasn’t close to him. He would wonder why Hiccup never confided in him and would instead run to Astrid, but then again, Dagur wasn’t the sharpest arrow in the quiver. After a moment she realized she hadn’t answered her friend, “Well,” she paused, trying to think up something really quick, “we were always better friends. We have spoken about dating several times, but we never got that far.”

 

Ruff chuckled, “Tuff said he thought that he may be gay,” she said bluntly.

 

“Just because he is picky about whom he dates doesn’t necessarily mean he is gay.”

 

“Well, it wasn’t any of my business, and still isn’t, on who he dates. I was just telling you what Tuff said. However, if I had to make a bet on it, I would say he was at least bisexual, which I don’t see a problem with personally. He doesn’t carry the normal traits of a straight guy. He’s always been into art and writing and all other types of things that you really don’t see a lot of straight guys being into. All I can say is I would hate it for him to break that news to the chief,” she stated nonchalantly.

 

But before Astrid could say anything, they both turned their attention back to the phone when the device started to ring. Astrid snatched the phone back and looked to see who it was then answered it when she saw Hiccup’s name, “Hey Hiccup,” she greeted, putting it on speakerphone.

 

“Hey Astrid. Did you get the pictures?”

 

“Yeah, we were actually just looking at them now,” she looked over at Ruff who was shifting around to get more comfortable on the bed before adding, “By the way, Ruff is here. I think she fell in love.” Astrid let out a small giggle when the twin bit her bottom lip and nodded her head, “By the way you are on speakerphone.”

 

Hiccup sighed at the news of Ruffnut being there. He didn’t hate her, but it wasn’t like they were buddies either, “Hey Ruff,” he called out to her stiffly.

 

“What’s up, Haddock? You need to give your trainer my number, like seriously,” she replied while crossing her legs.

 

Hiccup rolled his eyes, “Why would I do that? He doesn’t even know you and I don’t even know if he is single,” he retorted.

 

Ruff laughed and peered over at Astrid before bring her attention back to the phone, “Because if you won’t fuck him I will,” she stated bluntly.

 

Astrid’s eyes widened at the other girl’s comment even though she should have expected something like this to spring from the twin’s mouth. Hiccup on the other hand did not, he must have been drinking something because it sounded as if he was spitting it out and started coughing. Astrid suddenly burst into laughter, “Oh gods, Ruff,” she said between her cackles, earning a teasing snicker from the twin, “I think you killed him.”

 

Hiccup cleared his throat, not really sure what to say, but nonetheless got their attention as Astrid’s chortling calmed down. Hiccup was blushing furiously at this point. He hated how he embarrassed so easily, “What the hell makes you think I am going to fuck him?!” he shouted, obviously embarrassed.

 

Ruff shrugged her shoulders even though Hiccup couldn’t see, “Look, Haddock, don’t take it personally. I am merely saying that this guy is so hot that, if you did have sex with him, nobody would think you were gay. Shit, even guys around here would probably find it an honor to sleep with this guy,” she explained insouciantly.

 

Hiccup was dumbfounded by what the twin was telling him, “Why is it my conversations with you two always end up with sex?”

 

Astrid laughed, “Because you are easy to talk to about it I guess.”

 

“Hiccup,” Ruff interjected, “you seriously need to make him a friend.”

 

Hiccup shook his head, “Well, I am trying. We’re going to hang out tomorrow.”

 

Astrid squealed with joy, “You actually asked him out on a man-date? I’m so happy for you! Where are you going?”

 

Ruff chuckled, “Man-date, eh? Seems like Hiccup has gotten more ballsy then I remember,” she said earning a punch in the arm from the other blonde.

 

“Uh, heh, yeah. I asked him to hang out last night. I’m not sure where we are going to go. Jack said he had a good place to go. I actually have to meet him over at this guy’s house. He has band practice over there so I am gonna meet up with him since he is apparently close by,” he said.

 

“Wait, he’s in a band,” Astrid asked with a curious expression, “I know you said he sang well, but you never said he was in a band.”

 

Ruffnut, whose grin only grew bigger, sat up on the bed, “This guy is sounding better and better by the moment. He’s not in like one of those lame high school type bands is he?”

 

“Well, from what he has told me, he plays at some of the local clubs. According to him the gay clubs really love him.”

 

Ruffnut playfully nudged Astrid, “Well, Haddock, I suppose you may actually have a shot at him after all, but then again I can see why they like him too.”

 

Hiccup let out an exasperated sigh, “Anyways, I gotta go. I have a… doctor’s appointment I have to get to. I’ll talk to you later,” he said, nonchalantly, making sure not to bring up the fact that his doctor’s appointment was actually his therapy session around Ruffnut.

 

“Okay Hic, call me later. We were actually in the middle of watching Sherlock anyways.”

 

* * *

 

 

After getting dressed, as well as showering, eating and brushing his hair and teeth, etc., and feeding Toothless, Hiccup walked the mile and a half to his therapist’s office. He took note on how lovely the day was— a bit colder than the previous day, but still nice. Most of the leaves had fallen from the trees and painted the ground in small mounds of the discarded foliage. A light chilling breeze caused Hiccup to huddle more so under his coat. He was amazed at the low temperatures even though it was barely October. It wasn’t anything compared to Berk, but he figured it must have been from getting used to the slightly warmer temperatures of Burgess.

 

It didn’t take him long until he entered the heated building and into the doctor’s office that was down the first hall he came too. He approached the counter where the familiar female secretary sat and tapped on the window, catching her attention. She pulled the glass window open and smiled, asking, “How can I help you?”

 

“Hi,” he cleared his throat, “Hamish Haddock. I am here to see Dr. Toothiana Hy Loo.” The secretary nodded and started typing at the keyboard. Hiccup started looking around the waiting area as he awkwardly waited for the woman to finish whatever it was she was doing, “Okay, Mr. Haddock, please take a seat. She’ll come get you in a moment.”

 

Hiccup nodded and proceeded to take a seat in the provided chairs across the room. He began wondering if he should bring up his “date” with Jack. He didn’t want to get his hopes up too much by foreshadowing the events to come. It’s not like it’s an actual date, just an outing with a friend. Still, it might be nice to bring up something positive and it was something that he was excited about. Even if it was an outing with a friend, it meant that Jack wanted to spend time with him. It also meant that he was indeed capable of making new friends as well.

 

Hiccup’s thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of the door opening and a young teenage girl, no older than thirteen or fourteen if he had to guess, came bouncing out with Dr. Toothiana following behind her, “Okay, okay,” she chimed, “I will be home by 9:30.”

 

The young girl, on closer inspection, seemed to have similar hair to Toothiana with the exception of it being brown and a bit longer with bangs that swooped off to the side, but still containing the same turquoise and pink streaks that his therapist sported. The girl was thin, but taller than his therapist. She had large brown eyes and a round button nose and had a beauty mark—that added a bit of charm— just to the side of her right eye. The girl walked over to the coat rack and grabbed a puffy purple coat that had been hanging there and pulled it on, “Emma, seriously, don’t you dare think of pulling that ‘we lost track of time’ bullcrap with me again and show up two hours late. Do not think I will not lock you out. It’s supposed to get down tonight so sleeping on the patio will be a bitch for you. Especially since I will be too comfortable in my nice warm bed to answer your cries of ‘ _Mother, oh please will you let me in_ ’,” Toothiana said with a taunting tone.

 

It became very apparent to Hiccup that this had to be Toothiana’s daughter that she would always talk about. He couldn’t help, but chuckle at the exchange between the two. He had to admit that her daughter didn’t favor her that much, but he brushed it off figuring that she must have taken more from her father’s side. Toothiana glanced over at Hiccup, “Hey Hiccup,” she said, giving him a warm smile, “If you haven’t noticed, this is my daughter, Emma.”

 

Hiccup smiled over at the young teenager, “Hello, nice to meet you,” he greeted while giving an awkward wave.

 

The girl turned her attention to him, “Hiya, Hiccup,” she said giving a small smile, but still held a rushed aura, “I’m sorry I’m not able to stay and chat, not trying to seem rude, but I am _running late_ and my mom insists on holding me up even more,” she glanced back over at the petite woman with narrowed eyes and gestured to the door with an outstretched arm and open palm, “can I go now? Jamie has been waiting for me for, like, twenty minutes.”

 

Toothiana waved her off, “Yeah, go, but remember what I said. Be back by 9:30 or I will lock the door,” she replied, giving a stern face. Emma mumbled under her breath and left, calling back to her mom that she loved her and she would see her later that night. With Emma gone, Toothiana turned her attention back to Hiccup, “I’m sorry about that. I know it looks unprofessional, but I don’t really care who sees me fuss at my kid. At least it shows I care,” she piped with a laugh, “Come on back.”

 

Hiccup nodded and followed his therapist back to her office, “So, that’s your daughter, huh?” he said, making small talk as he closed the door and took his seat on the couch.

 

His therapist smiled over at him while she gathered his file and her notebook, “Yeah, she’s a pistol, but she’s still my little Baby Tooth. She’s getting to be that age where she thinks her mom is ‘super lame and embarrassing’, even though I give her more freedom than most parents,” she said as she made her way over to the couch as well and took her seat on the opposite end, “I try to be firm, but fair.”

 

Hiccup nodded and smiled a bit, “Baby Tooth, huh? That’s actually really cute.”

 

“Yeah, a friend started calling her that when she was younger because I used to be a dentist and it kinda stuck.”

 

“Oh, I didn’t know that. I’m curious, you wouldn’t actually lock her out if she showed up late, would you?”

 

“She’d learn real quickly to not show up late again,” Toothiana snickered, “I don’t know. She’s never tried me twice. I suppose I’d cross that bridge when I came to it. But I personally don’t think I’d leave her out there _all_ night, but a few hours, definitely.”

 

Hiccup couldn’t help, but laugh. This was the reason he liked Dr. Toothiana, she wasn’t like most doctors who tried to hold that stiff professionalism, she acted like a real person, though still professional, she knew how to make people feel comfortable. She talked to her patients like people and not the other way around. She would share things about herself and made people feel like they could open up more about themselves.

 

“So, Hiccup, how have things been? Are you still attending the gym,” she asked, bringing her legs onto the couch and propped her notebook in her lap.

 

Hiccup took off his coat and laid it across the arm of the couch, “Yeah, I’ve been going quite often. Last week I went almost every night. I won’t lie, my trainer made me work my ass off and I was sore for quite a few days, but I think my body is starting to get used to it,” he replied.

 

“That’s great!” she exclaimed, “So, has anything else happened?”

 

“Well,” he said with a grimace, “Yeah, actually, last night when I went I apparently got jealous and made an idiot of myself.”

 

“Jealous of whom?”

 

Hiccup felt his cheeks heat up, “Well, when I got to the gym Jack, my trainer, and this girl were flirting. I don’t know why, but I was an ass to her when he introduced me, but when she left she kissed him and I just got so angry,” he paused, “and maybe a little hurt. Anyways, when he asked me if I wanted to talk about it, I snapped at him and tossed the barbell I was holding and stormed off. But the thing is I have never acted like that before.”

 

“Oh my! Well, that does definitely sound like jealousy,” she commented, “What happened after that?”

 

Hiccup shrugged, “Well, I apologized and he forgave me. I suppose we are back on good terms now, I asked him to hang out tomorrow.”

 

“That’s fantastic. At least he didn’t take it to heart like some people do. As for the ‘acting out’ on your part, did you ever do this when you were with your ex? I ask to see if there is a pattern of some kind.”

 

Hiccup thought for a moment. Being around Dagur was different than being around Jack. Dagur was more controlling over Hiccup and also had a very bad habit of double standards. Dagur, on several occasions, had sex with multiple partners without Hiccup’s knowledge, well, until he felt the need to belittle him and compare ‘his muscularly challenged friend’ dimly to another partner. He would tell Hiccup that this person was better at riding him or this person gave way better blowjobs or this person could make him see stars with a flick of the tongue. It was like Dagur was allowed to brag about things like this, but Hiccup was never allowed to be jealous. As he explained this to Dr. Toothiana, her eyebrows knitted together, “Well, it seems to me that you are more comfortable around this guy you just met then the one you were with for four years. I say this because you say you weren’t allowed to feel or show feelings of certain things, but with this guy you not only feel these things, but you are able to freely express it to him, despite the fact that you feel remorse afterwards, you can still show it nonetheless. Do you like him?”

 

Hiccup nodded and ran his fingers through his hair, “Well, I do like him as a friend, but I’m sure that’s not the question you are asking,” he sighed and saw her nodded in affirmation, “I don’t think I am ready to like someone else.”

 

Toothiana leaned forward and interlocked her slender fingers, “Hiccup, an infatuation doesn’t have a time or a place. It can happen whether you want it to or not, but even you said that your relationship with Dagur should have never happened, does this feel the same way?”

 

The brunette wasn’t really ready to answer a question like this. He was afraid of the answer even though he already knew what it was. Saying it out loud made it that much more real. He averted his eyes and started glancing around the room, “It feels like I am happy, but scared at the same time. With Dagur,” he exhaled deeply, “it felt more like desperation, like it was the lesser of a bad situation.”

 

“If you don’t mind me asking, how did you two actually get together? I know that you said he was the son of your father’s friend, but what led up to you two becoming a couple?”

 

Hiccup’s mossy green eyes found their way back to the woman that sat on the opposite end of the couch, “One day when I came home from school my father had told me that Dagur said he wanted to take me out for a while. At first, I didn’t want to go because of all the crazy things Dagur had done to me when we were younger. He actually scared me, but I eventually agreed because my dad kept pressing for me to go,” he ran his fingers through his auburn hair, “We went and hung out for a while, catching up, and it actually wasn’t bad. I had fun with him so we started hanging out more often.”

 

He came to his feet and started pacing around the room, trying to reframe from fidgeting as much, but obviously failing at doing so. His palms were sweaty and he kept kneading his hands together, excluding when he began his wide gesturing that he did habitually, “I’d say that it was around the three month mark that things between us changed. I’ll never forget that day either, mainly because it was one of the most awkward moments of my life,” he cleared his throat, “This one day he called me and asked me if I wanted to go to a party. I was actually really excited about it. Dagur had been the only person who ever asked me to go to one with him so naturally I was happy when he asked. We had gone to a few before, but the excitement never ceased up until that point. When we got there, we had a blast. I actually got a little drunk and had been having a good time. After we had been there for about an hour, Dagur came over to me and told me how he wanted to bang this one girl there and ended up doing so. The thing that made it awkward was he made me watch him…” he trailed off at the end, almost mumbling.

 

Toothiana’s violet eyes widened, “Wait,” she paused holding up a hand, “he made you watch him have sex with another person?”

 

Hiccup nodded, “Yeah. I don’t know why I did it either. I followed him blindly and did what he asked. I don’t know if it was because I was a little drunk or because I just was so afraid of losing a friend since I didn’t really have any, but I’ll never forget what he said to me afterwards. He looked at me and had this malicious smile on his face and said, _‘You are nothing until you can make a woman come like that,’_ and then we left the party shortly after that. I didn’t speak to him the whole way back to my house.”  

 

There was a long pause before either of them spoke again. Toothiana could see the hurt in Hiccup’s eyes. She felt so bad for him, but she didn’t want to come right out and say it. He wasn’t there to be showered with pity and it would have only made things worse for him. It seemed that he was driven by the fear of loneliness. He would cling to the slightest bit of affection or attention without question. She exhaled, “So, how did things progress from there?”

 

“You mean, when we started sleeping together?” he questioned, looking over at her from the corner of his eyes.

 

“Not necessarily. I am assuming there had to be some sort of time lapse between then and when you two became intimate. You said it was the most awkward moment of your life, I was just wondering how you confronted that,” she explained.

 

“Oh, well, I didn’t see him for a while after that. It stayed like that for a month or two and then one day he showed up at my house and asked me to go hang out with him again. We didn’t really talk about that night,” Hiccup took his seat back on the couch, pressing his back to the arm; “Things went back to normal for a while. We’d hang out or watch movies, until one day he just kissed me out of the blue and everything changed from that point. It went from that to fierce make out sessions and eventually to us… y’know,” he trailed off at the end.

 

“Your father,” she began as she scribbled something on her notepad, “he didn’t know about this?”

 

He shook his head, “No, I never told him about anything. Him looking at me was hard enough, I couldn’t imagine if I told him a small percentage of what I have told you.”

 

“So, you haven’t come out to your dad?” she asked, chewing on the end of her pen.

 

“My dad always had hopes of me marrying my friend Astrid. For years, even after she moved with her dad, he still would occasionally bring it up. He would talk about how I needed to keep the family line going. He is all about holding up the traditions and customs of our community. Also, since I had never been with a woman I don’t even really know what to call myself,” Hiccup let out a deep sigh.

 

“Well, Hiccup, even if you are gay, bisexual, pansexual, or whatever orientation you identify with, doesn’t mean you couldn’t ever have children. There are other options for that if children ever interested you and you did end up with a man,” she stated while giving a weak smile, “there is adoption as well as surrogates. Don’t take this the wrong way, but have you ever thought about being with a woman? I ask because if you have it could help you come to terms with identifying your sexual orientation.”

 

Hiccup thought for a moment. The thought of him being with a woman had crossed his mind a few times over the years, but there had never really been any one to catch his attention, except Astrid. However, being with any other woman beside Astrid never felt right to him. He knew and trusted Astrid and loved her dearly. If he had to put a name to what he was he would probably go with being gay with one exception. Toothiana nodded along as he tried his best to explain this to her, “Your friend Astrid must mean a lot to you if you can see yourself being with her.”

 

Hiccup gave a crooked smile, “Yes, she does. She was always there for me when I had nobody else. When she moved away from Berk, we still continued to talk and would see each other every so often. She was there for me when my mom died and was my shoulder to cry on. Even though I was sad and I cried until I couldn’t cry anymore, her simply being there made things better. I felt bad for lying to her about Dagur for so long,” he said, his smile fading.

 

“Why did you lie?”

 

“When things were starting to get rough, which was also around the time Astrid moved back to Berk, I would lie to her or make up excuses for him or just lie about the situation as a whole. I wasn’t trying to deceive her; I just was so embarrassed to tell her the truth,” he said, wiping a tear that slowly began to slide down his cheek, “I’m a terrible liar and she knew better. She would question why I had so many bruises, where a gash came from, how I sprang my wrist, but like an idiot, I lied. The worst part about this is that what I have told you was the good part.”

 

The petite woman grabbed the box of tissues that was placed on the table behind her and sat it between then, allowing Hiccup better access to them. He graciously grabbed one and blew his nose after wiping his eyes. She wanted to ask him to continue, but figured by how he was fidgeting and acting he was probably done for the day. “Hiccup,” she said, gaining his attention, “you are not an idiot, you were scared. You had grown conditioned to this treatment and feared it to get worse. That doesn’t make you an idiot or stupid or dumb. Fear, just in itself, is a powerful motivator. It can make people do things they wouldn’t normally do. It doesn’t make you weak, it makes you human.”

 

Hiccup nodded and wiped another falling tear, “Thank you.”

 

“You’re welcome, sweetie,” she smiled warmly at him.

 

“Would it be okay if we talked about this another time?” he asked, meekly.

 

Toothiana nodded, “Absolutely and for what it’s worth, you made great strides today. I’m glad you are opening up to me.”

 

Hiccup simply nodded, “It actually makes me feel better to talk about this some, despite how difficult it can be.”

 

“I know it can be painful, but the thing you must remember is that it happened and it is behind you now. You are not broken beyond repair.”

 

Hiccup looked at the floor with a frown, “How do you fix a broken mirror?”

 

Toothiana placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, “Magic,” she said with a reassuring smile.

 

Hiccup looked at her curiously, “Magic?”

 

The multicolor haired woman nodded, “It may sound odd, but whether you choose to take it from a literal stand point or figuratively, magic is around us. Faith, belief, hope, wonder, and even our own memories can be considered magic. They are mystical forces that keep us going when we feel that all is lost and we are at our lowest. I do have faith in you, Hiccup.”

 

Hiccup felt his chest tighten some. He really felt that he had lucked out finding Dr. Toothiana to be his therapist. In many ways she reminded him of his mother— caring, understanding, whimsical, and compassionate, “Thank you,” he said as they came to their feet.

 

“You are very much welcome. Now, I will be out of town this coming week, so I will see you the week after next.”

 

Hiccup nodded, “Okay, I’ll see you then,” he said while pulling on his coat.

 

“I hope you have fun tomorrow with your friend. Any ideas of what you’ll be doing?” she asked as she gathered his file and her notebook and went to place them onto her desk.

 

Hiccup shook his head, “No, not yet, but doing anything that isn’t sitting around all day is better than nothing.”

 

The petite woman smiled, “I agree. Well, like I said, I hope you have fun and take care.”

 

* * *

 

 

Unsurprisingly Hiccup didn’t sleep well that night. When he had arrived home after his therapy session his apartment was yet again destroyed by his furry companion. Toothless sat by idly and watched Hiccup’s vain attempt to once again straighten the place once more. The auburn haired man swore and mumbled under his breath the whole time, occasionally glancing at the cat that had perched up on the counter and stared mockingly at him while he did so. Even though the majority of the time Hiccup was home Toothless slept or would sit and watch him draw, write, paint, or whatever craft his owner was in the mood for. It was only when Hiccup was out that he would entertain himself by knocking anything that wasn’t fastened down onto the floor.

 

Hiccup had to count his blessings; at least Toothless wasn’t the type of cat to actually destroy anything. He would simply scatter papers, nudge books onto the floor, or attempt to pull the covers from the bed.

 

After he had cleaned up the apartment, fed his naughty cat, and fixed him something simple to eat, he made his way to his room and began to draw. He spent hours at his desk trying to perfect his latest drawing: the Deadly Nadder. His inspiration for this dragon was Astrid, not so much the design, but the color pallet and behavior she possessed. She was a beautiful creature that stood erect on two legs with a long wing span, sharp talons, and prominent horn coming off the nasal bridge as well as along the crown of her head, along with hundreds of spine needles that could be shot from great distances.

 

Once of Astrid’s most beautiful, and Hiccup’s favorite, features were her big, bright blue eyes. Besides Jack, Astrid had some of the most beautiful eyes anybody could ever see and because of this he chose to color the dragon a matching shade. He added a mixture of yellow along the underside of the wings and tail, symbolizing Astrid’s hair.

 

By the time he completed the tedious details of his work—shadowing, scales, and age markings—it was close to 2 a.m. He had received a text from Jack telling him the address of where he would be and around what time to show up. His mind continued to race causing him, when he finally did go to bed, to toss and turn for hours. He was excited about hanging out with Jack, but his mind kept turning back to what he had told his therapist earlier that day. The memories made him sick to his stomach and what was worse was he didn’t even tell her the worst of it. It was a bit of a relief to have somebody, other than Astrid, to talk to about his past.

 

The only thing was he didn’t like talking about it. It was something he was going to have to live with for the rest of his life, but he did have hope that as time went on and with therapy, he could live with himself. He knew that he couldn’t bury it and pretend it never happened. That would only make things worse. He had to look forward at what the future held for him and he had to keep telling himself that. After spending what felt like forever mulling this over in his mind, Hiccup was able to go to sleep.

 

He woke up later than he initially planned that next day. It was a little passed noon, but thanks to Toothless meowing and batting at his nose, demanding to be fed, he sprang out of bed. After feeding him, Hiccup made his way to the bathroom to relieve himself and shower. Hiccup didn’t understand why he was so nervous, but he was. He felt as if he may fly away by the amount of butterflies that filled his belly.

 

It only got worse after he finished showering and brushing his teeth. He stood in front of his opened closet in nothing but a pair of boxers and towel around his shoulders, staring at the contents within and debating on what to wear. Toothless entered the room and looked at his owner. He meowed at him as if to let him know he was there and Hiccup turned his attention to the black feline and held up two shirts, one was olive green with a bold black Celtic knot and the other was a black shirt with a blue and green dragon on it, “Hey bud, which one should I wear?”

 

Toothless cocked his head to the side. Hiccup groaned and turned to the mirror that was fastened to the door, “I think I may wear the green one,” he said rhetorically. Toothless slinked over to him and snaked between his bare legs letting out a loud meow. Hiccup looked down at him and smiled, “Thanks bud. I like it better too.”

 

After dressing into the green shirt and a pair of jeans, Hiccup slipped his socks and shoes on and made his way to the door. As he grabbed his wallet, keys, and cell phone he looked back at Toothless who followed him, “I’ll be back later, bud. Try not to destroy the place while I’m gone.” Toothless licked his paw and rubbed at his ear nonchalantly. Hiccup shook his head and closed the door, making his way out of the complex and towards Aster’s house.

 

He pulled out his phone and show that it was close to 3:30 p.m. and he felt himself growing more nervous. He decided to send Jack a text and told him he was on his way. It only took a moment before he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and he saw that Jack had texted him back. Hiccup opened it, _“Hey, Hic! We are in the garage. Just come in the side door when you get here.”_

Hiccup carded his fingers through his auburn hair. One thing he was grateful for was that at least when Jack texted somebody he actually wrote out the words. He hated when he would get texts and he couldn’t understand half of the shit written there. After texting him back he slipped his phone back into his jacket pocket and made his way to his destination. He grew more and more nervous as he turned down the street Aster’s house was supposed to be on. At one point he even debated on just turning back around and going home and cancelling the whole thing or at least have Jack pick him up from his apartment, but it was too late for that. From where he was standing he could see his friend’s blue car in the driveway of a small brick house. 

 

Thor’s beard, he was nervous. He hated being so awkward around new people and he knew that this situation was going to make him very uncomfortable. He had only met Aster once and he hadn’t known Jack but for a few weeks. _‘This is a bad idea,’_ he thought as he made his way up the drive way, _‘I shouldn’t have agreed to meet him here.’_

 

As he approached the house he was able to hear music coming from the garage and some indistinctive chattering. Around the side of the house, where the garage was, he saw a screen door and figured that was where Jack told him to go. The sound of a guitar being played was caused Hiccup not to walk straight in. He peered through the door and was able to see Jack, Aster, and three other people. Just as he was about to knock Jack glanced over at the door and smiled. He brought his index finger to his mouth telling Hiccup not to say anything before motioning for him to enter with a flapping hand.

 

Hiccup reluctantly entered the garage and stood awkwardly against the wall. His heart almost stopped when he saw a familiar brunette there. Heather sat behind a keyboard and giving Hiccup the biggest smirk she could muster. He felt his cheeks heat up a bit from the embarrassment of their first meeting. Hiccup quickly averted his eyes from her and began looking around. There were only two people there that he didn’t know… in some way or another and that was a tall brown headed guy that was on bass and a girl with long, really long, braided blonde hair who was on the electric guitar.

 

She didn’t seem to really notice him since she was concentrating on the complicated looking fingering of the strings she played. Hiccup was not musically inclined in anyway, so playing any type of instrument looked difficult to him. He looked over at Jack who was standing in front of a microphone stand, clasping his hands over the mic. The blonde girl was soon joined by Aster of the drums and Jack’s body began to move along with the music.

 

_Everybody's looking for love, Oh, oh (oh, oh)._

 

Jack’s deep, crisp voice rang through the small set of speakers that was placed on either side of the room. He had the brunet man on bass that was singing backup, adding to the almost nonexistent acoustics the garage provided for them. Hiccup found his heart rattling inside of his chest as the bi-color haired man’s hands went to his chest and, with his slender fingers in the shape of a heart, imitated a rhythmic beating, his eyes, locking onto the skinny teen.   

 

_Ain't that the reason you're at this club? Oh, oh (oh, oh)._

_You ain't gonna find it dancing with him, no, oh (no, oh)._

_I got a better solution for you girl, oh, oh._

The brown headed male began syncing in with the blonde as the music began to speed up and Jack’s body react more to the beats. With one hand dropping back to the mic and the other swaying back and forth in the air.

 

 _Just leave with me now, say the word and we'll go._  
I'll be your teacher, I'll show you the ropes.  
You'll see a side of love you've never known  
I can see it going down, going down.

As Jack finished the bridge of the song, Aster’s beat picked up into a quick pace and crashed down onto the cymbals. Hiccup did whatever he could to keep his jaw from hitting the floor because within that moment Jack’s true showmanship began to emerge. He placed to mic back into the stand’s holder.

 

_In my head_

_I see you all over me._

Jack’s knees locked and his eyes once again glanced over at Hiccup. He had ran his fingers through his hair slowly before his finger shot out and pointed at Hiccup causing the boy’s eyes to widen. Jack’s hands slowly slid down the length of his body, halting at his slightly protruding iliac crest. 

_In my head_

_You fulfill my fantasy._

Hiccup felt like he was going to die right then and there. Jack’s heterochromatic eyes slid shut and his hips began to move as he rolled them against the microphone stand and his hand moved up under his shirt, running his palms over his incredibly toned belly. Hiccup was blushing furiously at this point. He couldn’t take his eyes away from the man before him on top of the fact he was blushing and smiling like a big goof. He prayed to whatever gods were listening that everybody was too engulfed in the music that they didn’t pay attention to him.

_In my head, you'll be screaming OUT!_

_In my head, it's going down._

_In my head, it's going down._

_In my head…_

As the momentum slowed Hiccup leaned back against the wall, trying to hide his awkward and probably creepy looking smile. He glanced over at Heather, who had yet to touch her instrument since he had arrived. She was indeed staring at him with a smug grin before looking back at the sheet music that sat on the attached stand of her keyboard.

 

_Some dudes know all the right things to say, aha, aha (aha, aha)._

_When it comes down to it, it's all just game._

_Instead of talking let me demonstrate, yeah (yeah)_

_Get down to business and skip foreplay, ahay_

Heather glanced over at Jack, then back at Hiccup. He felt a little weird about the fact that he was being stared down by Jack’s maybe-girlfriend. He looked back over as the bridge of the song came around again.

 

_Just leave with me now, say the word and we'll go.  
I'll be your teacher _

_I'll show you the ropes._

This time around Jack seemed to be a bit more provocative. He started gesturing to Hiccup, or at least in his direction, and pantomiming as if he was trying to draw him closer.

  
You'll see a side of love you've never known,  
I can see it going down, going down.

_In my head, I see you all over me._

_In my head, you fulfill my fantasy._

Hiccup couldn’t help, but stare at the bi-color haired man as he once more pointed at him before gesturing to himself. Hiccup gave up trying to hide his goofy smile as the chorus came up again and Jack repeated his moves from the first time. The guy was obviously a great showman or at least telling himself that will help him sleep at night.

_In my head, you'll be screaming OUT!_

_In my head, it's going down._

_In my head, it's going down._

_In my head._

At this time Aster and the brunet male on bass stopped playing and only the long haired blonde continued for a few measures. She looked up over and Hiccup at this time and flashed a sweet smile at him before turning her attention back to the guitar in her hand, Aster joining back in with her. All, but Jack started singing in the background for a couple of measures.  


_(Ay-oh, ay-oh, ay-oh)_

Jack glanced back at his bandmates and winked before turning his attention back to the front of the room. He looked at Hiccup and smiled at him, earning a smirk back from him as the auburn haired lad crossed his arms.

_You singing to me baby **in my head right now!**_

_(Ay-oh, ay-oh, ay-oh) everybody!_

_(Ay-oh, ay-oh, ay-oh)_

_She'll be screaming out when it all goes down._

Heather who had been sitting still behind the keyboard for the majority of the song began playing a much softer melody as the other’s rested their instruments for a moment until Aster joined her after the second line of the bridge, allowing the song to pick up once more. She rested again after the bridge.

_Just leave with me now, say the word and we'll go._

_I'll be your teacher, I'll show you the ropes._

_You'll see a side of love you've never known,_

_I can see it going down, going down._

Once the rhythm picked back up, Jack’s erotic display once more shined around them, his eyes never looking away from Hiccup. Hiccup felt his body stiffen the more he watched his friend move.

_In my head, I see you all over me._

_In my head, you fulfill my fantasy._

_In my head, you'll be screaming out._

_In my head, it's going down._

_In my head, it's going down._

_In my head, I see you all over me._

_In my head, you fulfill my fantasy._

_In my head, you'll be screaming out._

_In my head, it's going down._

_In my head, it's going down._

_In my head._

As the song came to an end and the other instruments faded out, Heather once more played a softer melody until the song’s end. Hiccup’s smile grew wider as he clapped like a seal trying to earn a treat from the zoo keeper, “Wow! That was amazing!” he exclaimed as Jack took a bow.

 

The bi-color haired male laughed a bit as he walked over and grabbed his bottle of water off of a nearby table before joining Hiccup, “Glad you liked the show,” he commented before taking a drink. Aster rolled his eyes and got up from behind the drum set, grabbing his own bottle of water and joined them, “For a moment I thought you were about to start having sex with my mic stand,” he quipped at the bi-color haired man, playfully nudging him before extending his hand to Hiccup, “Aster Bunnymund. We’ve met before.”

 

Hiccup smiled and politely shook the older man’s hand, “Yeah, you were the one who registered me,” he said in affirmation, “it’s nice to see you again.”

 

The Australian chuckled before glancing over at Jack, “Wow, Jack, you found a polite one. Now don’t go turning him more like you.”

 

Jack looked at Aster with a fake offense, “More like me? What is that supposed to mean, old man?”

 

“You just answered your own question,” he stated flatly.

 

Hiccup chuckled at their back and forth, “No worries, Aster. I may be a runt, but I can hold my own.”

 

The older man patted him on the back of the shoulder, “You’re alright with me, kid.”

 

Jack rolled his eyes and exhaled deeply, “Come on, Hiccup,” he pulled him back towards the back of the garage where the others were putting away their instruments, “Let me introduce you to everyone.”

 

Jack gestured towards the keyboard where Heather stood, “You’ve met Heather, our pianist—keyboarder… whatever you wanna call her,” he said with a small laugh. Hiccup gave her a weak smile. He had felt awkward around her since he first met her and now was no different. She wasn’t giving him the look of inferiority, but more of a sarcastic smirk that remained planted on her features. He couldn’t explain why he felt some intimidation from her, but if he had to guess he figured that maybe it had something to do with the fact that she was possible competition and he felt that if that were true she would surely win and she knew it.

 

Turning his attention back to his friend who pulled him over to their bass and guitar players, he was greeted by a warm smile from the blonde girl, “This right here,” Jack began by gesturing to the brunet male, “is Eugene—er, Flynn,” he corrected himself when Flynn gave him a sour look. He then looked at the blonde, “and this is his little squeeze—Rapunzel.”

 

“Who are you calling a squeeze?” she asked with venom before turning her attention back to the auburn haired teen, “Nice to meet you, Hiccup. Jack’s been going on about you all day. I couldn’t wait to meet you.”

 

Hiccup smiled at the two of them and shook their hands when offered. He looked back at Rapunzel, “Has he now? Well, I hope I didn’t disappoint,” he said. He looked over at Flynn, “And for what it’s worth, I like Eugene better.”

 

Rapunzel laughed, “See?! I told you.”

 

Flynn shrugged, “Well, I figured I might as well start going by a stage name and Eugene sounds too personal.”

 

Jack snickered at him, “You got it from a children’s story.”

 

“One of the best fucking children’s stories out there!” he retorted with a cocky smirk, earning a slap to the arm from Rapunzel and her chastising him about his language.

 

“Well, I’m going to go jump in the shower so we can head out,” he said to Hiccup and patted him on the back before say out loud to the others, “Aster I’m using your shower. You guys be nice to Hiccup while I’m gone.”

 

“Make sure you get all the hair out this time! I don’t need to pull another Jack Frost wig out of my shower!” the Aussie called to him as he entered the house only to have Jack turn back and say, while sporting a shit-eating grin, “You could always use it for your receding hairline!” and with that he disappeared into the house, but not without Aster trying to throw the bottle of water he was holding at him but instead hitting the door.

 

* * *

 

 

Hiccup actually enjoyed spending time with the others while Jack got ready. He even spoke with Heather, even though he did feel a tad awkward around her, she never brought up the elephant in the room that stood between them. She, along with the others, held casual conversation with them and he got to know a bit more about them. Aster explained how he got caught up in a band with people ten years younger than he was. He told Hiccup it was mainly because of Jack and how he was the only person they knew that knew how to play the drums. He also said that he was also there to keep an eye on them and make sure they weren’t getting cut short on any deals.

 

Eugene, Rapunzel, and Heather knew Jack since high school. Eugene also lived in the boys home with Jack, but he didn’t get moved there until he was about sixteen. They told him how the idea for the band came together after they did a performance in the talent show during their junior year of high school. Hiccup had even asked Rapunzel about her hair and why she kept it as long as she did, which it was at an impressive length of being down to her calves when it wasn’t braided. She told him that her mother, growing up, never wanted her to cut it and over the years she got used to the weight of it being there, despite the fact that it caused her neck a lot of strain.

 

She spoke of the possibility of cutting it and donating it to a wig maker for cancer patients which made Hiccup smile. He remembered when his mother had lost all of her hair during the chemotherapy and she was so happy when she got her wig. She told him that it made her not feel as bad about herself when she had it on. However, he didn’t want to bring this up to them, but he did tell her that if she did then it would make a lot of children and other cancer patients happy because even though her hair was really long it was very well taken care of and it looked as though it could make a lot of descent length wigs. Normally people who have incredibly long hair and after it gets to a certain length, it begins to tatter and get really bad split ends, but Rapunzel’s didn’t. Her hair was beautiful and full from the top of her head to its end.

 

Jack returned after a while dressed in jeans and a deep blue t-shirt with his car keys and hoodie in hand. He was glad to see Hiccup and his other friends getting along so well. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t a bit anxious for them to meet, especially after Hiccup met Heather. Even though he knew Hiccup wasn’t having a good day when he met her and things ended on a good term, he just hoped that things didn’t end up bad.

 

“Hey, Hiccup. See you’ve gotten to know everyone a bit better,” he said with a big kool-aid grin, “You ready to go?”

 

Hiccup looked over at his friend and smiled, “Yeah.” He turned to Aster, “Thanks for having me over and it was nice meeting the rest of you,” he said before walking along over to Jack.

 

Aster smirked at the two, “Now you two behave yourself. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” he called out to them.

 

Jack looked over his shoulder, “Bunny, we are not going to the Poodle Skirt Sock-Hop and going to get a couple of Club Sodas.”

 

Aster’s face fell, “Oi! Fuck off, Frost!”

 

Jack busted out laughing and pulled Hiccup out of the garage. Hiccup pouted a bit, “Why are you so mean to him?”

 

Jack threw up his hands in surrender, “Hey, if you knew half of the things he used to do to me when I was a teenager then you wouldn’t be upset about a few Old Age jokes,” he said as they got into the car and earned a hum and nod from Hiccup.

 

“So,” the auburn haired teen began as he pulled his seatbelt on while they backed out of the driveway, “where exactly are we heading?” he asked only to have Jack hold a hand up to him.

 

“Uh, uh, uh. It’s a surprise.”

 

Hiccup nodded, “Oh, well, I was just asking because I only have so much money.”

 

Jack glanced back over at him, “Don’t worry about how much it is. I’m paying.”

 

“Why?”

 

Jack ran a hand through his still slightly damp hair, “Because you look like you could use a little fun. Plus, I was the one who offered to take you to this place. I wouldn’t suggest coming all the way out there if I wasn’t going to pay for it.”

 

“Thank you. You know that you don’t have to do that,” he replied.

 

“Yeah, I know and I wouldn’t if I didn’t want to,” he smiled over at Hiccup, “Look, just don’t worry about it. If you want to pay me back then you can by having a good time.” He mentally slapped himself for sounding so utterly cliché but brushed it off.

 

Hiccup nodded and eventually changed the subject. The drive to their destination wasn’t too long and they passed the time with small talk. Eventually Jack pulled into a parking lot of a rather large stone building. Hiccup marveled at it for a moment, “Dreamland Arcade Bar & Grill?” he read aloud and looked over curiously over at Jack who nodded with a cheeky grin.

 

“Trust me, it is even better than it sounds,” he said turning off the car and getting out, “I hope you are hungry because the food is amazing.”

 

The two of them headed into the building and Hiccup gazed around in astonishment. The inside looked so cool. The building was split off into two sections, one being a regular restaurant and the other being the arcade. Hiccup glanced into the arcade side to see what all was in there, but Jack told him that after they ate that they were going to go in there and he could see it for all its gloriousness. The two of them approached the hostess stand where a woman of medium height and with long insanely curly red hair that was pulled back in a ponytail stood. She was wearing a long sleeve white shirt and black slacks with a gold tie, which seemed to be the uniform here.

 

At the moment she hadn’t noticed them. Her back was turned in their direction as she spoke into a headset, obviously sending in a to-go order. Jack stood there with a smirk on his face and leaned against the counter as she turned around. Her face went from a happy smile to a disappointed scowl, “Oh, no…” she said in a thick Scottish accent, rolling her eyes, “wha’ are yoo dooin’ ‘ere?”

 

Jack laughed, “Aww, come on. Is that the welcome back I get? Whatever happened to ‘Greet All Customers with a Smile’?”

 

She scoffed and leaned forward a bit, “Ha! Rubbish with all tha’! I’m not cleenin’ oop your mess again, Jack Frost. I still ‘ave not furgott’n last time.”

 

Jack chuckled softly, “I promise, I will behave myself. Now, come on, Merida, I wanna show my friend a good time.” When he mentioned Hiccup, Merida glanced over at him and smirked. She grabbed a couple of menus, “Wee lamb, yoo don’t know what yoo got’n yourself into. Follow me,” she said gesturing for them to follow her.

 

By the time Hiccup was very confused. He didn’t have the slightest idea what they were referring to and he was beginning to think that there was more to Jack then laughing and harmless jokes. He sped up behind Jack and whispered, “Um, mind explaining what that was all about?”

 

Jack waved it off, “It’s a long story, but trust me there is nothing to worry about.”

 

When they arrived at their table and took their seat Merida told him once more that he better behave and set their menus down before making her way back to the front of the restaurant. Just as Hiccup was about to ask for an explanation once more their server, a shorter girl with short black hair that was in a pixie cut and wearing black lipstick, approached the table. However, much to Hiccup’s surprise she had the same attitude as the girl Merida.

 

“Jackson Overland-Frost,” she stated simply.

 

Jack laughed and smiled, “Hey there Mavis. How have you been? How are dear ol’ Count Drac and Johnny?”

 

She rolled her eyes, “Well, if you think my father forgave you for what you did then you are sorely mistaken. He still locks up the alcohol when Johnny comes over. However, Johnny and I are doing as well as we can be. In two weeks it’ll be our three year anniversary.”

 

Hiccup winced at her words. Whatever it was Jack had done must have been pretty bad to have the staff keep bringing it up. The two continued for a moment before Jack introduced him to her. She wasn’t bitter toward Hiccup as she had been with Jack, “Well Hiccup, it is nice meeting you. Just don’t let him talk you into doing anything stupid.”

 

The auburn haired man smiled, “I’ll keep that in mind.”

 

She nodded, “Now what would you like to drink?”

 

“Iced Tea, please,” Hiccup replied.

 

“Just a Pepsi,” Jack chimed, “Oh by the way Mavis, is he in?”

 

The raven haired girl smiled, “Yeah, I’ll go get him.” And with that, Mavis disappeared into the kitchen.

 

Hiccup sighed, “ _Now_ do you mind explaining what’s going on here and why everyone is scolding you?”

 

Jack sat back in his seat and chuckled, “Alright, alright. Last Halloween, Mavis’s dad threw a costume party here and I was invited, as were a lot of Mavis’s other friends. It was pretty cool. Her dad was dressed as Count Dracula, one of her uncles was Frankenstein, the other was a Werewolf and one of his friends was a mummy. Johnathan, her boyfriend was doing some cheesy Frankenstein knock-off and was calling himself ‘Johnny Stein’. Well after a while the party started getting pretty lame and I wanted to spice it up a bit,” he explained casually, “and me coming as Jack Frost, the Embodiment of Winter and Fun, I decided to get drunk.”

 

Hiccup’s face fell, “Oh, gods, what did you do Jack?”

 

Jack laughed, “Well, I only got a little drunk, but I made sure Johnny was shit-faced. But you can’t blame it all on me, I just supplied the drinks, not force them down his throat. Anyways, I somehow convinced Johnny that everybody here was not in costumes and that they were _real_ monsters.”

 

Hiccup slowly raised a hand to his mouth in awe of the story and also trying not to laugh. Jack continued, “Needless to say, Johnny didn’t take it too well. He started freaking out and screaming, trying to get out of here. He knocked her dad over a table, along with a few other tables on the way out. The place was trashed, man.”

 

“You didn’t?”

 

“He did,” said Mavis, interrupting their conversation and sat their drinks onto the table, “and it took us hours to clean this place up.”

 

“Mavis, I told you guys I was sorry!” he protested.

 

She scoffed, “Yes you did, but you didn’t help clean it either.”

 

Jack rolled his eyes, “No, I was too drunk for that. Also, I went after your boyfriend to make sure he didn’t run into the street and get run over.”

 

“Well, he wouldn’t have if you didn’t tell him my father was actually Dracula,” she retorted.

 

“Okay, Mavis, you win. I apologize… for the eighth time.”

 

Mavis’s black painted lips curled into a smirk, “Good. Now, he should be out here in a moment. I’ll be back to get your order.”

 

Jack nodded and the black haired girl walked away to attend to other customers. He turned his attention back to Hiccup who was sitting there trying to hold back his laughter, “Well, it seems that she _told_ you. By the way, how are you even still allowed in here after pulling a stunt like that?”

 

“Well, that’s easy,” Jack replied, lazily taking a drink out of his soda, “I am friends with the owner.” And before Hiccup could say anything else, Jack’s heterochromatic eyes glanced off to the side and a wide smile sprouted onto his features, “And this is him.” He said while gesturing to a short, chubby, man with blond hair that was wearing black slacks and a yellow button up shirt that approached the table. He greeted the two of them with a kind wave.

 

Hiccup suddenly became very confused when Jack’s arms and hands started moving about creating odd gestures, “Hiccup, I’d like you to meet Jayel Sanderson.” It was then that the younger boy realized what Jack was doing: he was using sign language. A big grin came onto his face as he looked over at Sanderson who tipped his imaginary hat.

 

Hiccup waved at him awkwardly, not really knowing what to do at that moment since he didn’t know any sign language. Jack continued to sign as he spoke, to keep Sanderson in on the conversation, “You can speak to him Hiccup, he can read lips.”

 

Hiccup turned back to the short man, “Hello, I love your place you have here. My name is Hiccup.”

 

Sanderson turned back to Jack with a confused look on his face and curled his hand into a fist, leaving his thumb pointed up and pushed it to his chest and did a slight jerk upward asking if he had read his lips correctly, “ _Hiccup_?” he signed, earning a laugh from Jack.

 

“Yes, he goes by ‘Hiccup’, Sandy,” he signed. Jack looked back over at Hiccup, still signing to Sandy as he spoke, “He wasn’t sure if he read your lips wrong or not.”

 

Sandy looked between the two for a moment before getting Jack’s attention and started signing away at him, _“So, are you two together?”_

 

Jack shook his head. He didn’t want to repeat what was being asked because he didn’t want to embarrass his friend or himself, _“No, Sandy. We’re just friends. You sound like Bunny.”_

 

_“But, Jack he’s a cutie and he seems nice. Besides, when was the last time you actually dated somebody?”_

 

Jack sighed and the two continued their silent conversation. Hiccup watched in astonishment as his seemed to sign with ease. It was obvious that he had been doing this for a long time and was very well versed in the language. One thing he did notice from Sandy was when he would sign, apart from moving his mouth along with whatever it was he was saying, is that every so often he would click his tongue. Hiccup wasn’t sure if that was his way of ending sentences or if it was just out of habit, but he remained quiet and watched the two.

 

After a moment Mavis returned and Sanderson excused himself because he had some things he needed to attend to. After ordering their food, Jack looked over at his friend, “So, are you enjoying your time so far?”

 

Hiccup took a drink out of his tea and nodded, “Yeah. I now know that you are a prankster that likes to trash parties. I also know now that you speak sign language.”

 

Jack shrugged, “Sandy was actually the one who taught me. He has actually taught a lot of people here. But he does also carry a pad of paper around as well. He actually used to work for North, my adopted father, as a supervisor in his factory back in the day. Then about five years ago he wanted to start a business of his own and bought this place with North’s help. It didn’t take long for this place to become a success, this being a college town and all. This is why I admire Sandy so much. Even though he is deaf he never let that slow him down and look at what he has to show for it.”

 

Hiccup smiled, “He seems nice. I wish we had colorful characters like that back in Berk.”

 

The bi-color haired man gave a half smile, “I’m sure there are. I mean you seem pretty interesting.”

 

The other male scoffed as he took another sip of his drink and sat back, “Not really. Berk is full of people who are tough and tasteless. A perfect example of that is, well, there was this old man that used to live on the outskirts of town. His name is Milton and this guy was a dick. He used to walk around with this old crusty looking dog of his named Fungus. It seemed like everywhere I would go, there he’d be. He always had something to say to me, nothing good either, but I wasn’t the only one. He would be like that to everybody. He used to smell really bad too. It was almost like he would wash his clothes, but wait a few days before throwing them into the dryer, so they smelled soured and like mildew… so that’s what I started calling him— Mildew. It seemed to have caught on because soon the whole town was calling him that and he hated me even more,” he ended with a chuckle.

 

Jack burst into laughter, “Oh, my god, that’s wonderful!” Hiccup smiled. He loved hearing Jack’s laugh. He loved how the other male was always smiling and laughing, always having a good time. He loved how when he smiled, the corner of his eyes would crinkle and his dimples would show as he flashed his perfectly white smile. He watched as Jack continued to talk, but didn’t really pay attention to the words, just his facial expressions and his enthusiasm. Hiccup’s train of thought was interrupted when Mavis returned and placed their food on the table and refilled their drinks. They continued their small talk while they ate.

 

When they were finished, Jack paid and they headed over to the arcade. The large room held a plethora of games, some that Hiccup hadn’t seen in years. The variety of machines went from old school cocktail Ms. Pac-Man and Asteroid to Dance Dance Revolution and many different hunting and racing games. There were also several pool and air hockey tables as well. Along the far wall were a row of basketball games and whack-a-mole machines. It was the most incredible thing Hiccup had ever seen. He couldn’t ever imagine an arcade like this even existed and some of the rare games must have taken years to track down, but alas here they all were right before him.

 

“Geez, Hic, might want to pick your jaw off the floor before you leave it behind,” he chimed with a chuckled, causing the younger male’s face to heat up due to his noticeable excitement.

 

Jack had gone to the coin dispenser and came back handing him a handful of tokens. Hiccup thanked him and they headed off in different directions. The auburn haired lad didn’t immediately go to a machine, but instead wandered around, dodging kids who were running around, to see more of the impressive game collection. He looked over his shoulder to see that Jack had settled on a motorcycle racing game, which he played rather well.

 

Hiccup smiled over at him, watching as he bent his body side to side and skillfully turned sharp corners of the virtual track. He couldn’t slow his beating heart that rapidly rapped against his sternum. He noticed that every time he kept his eyes on Jack that this would happen. He was definitely attracted to the man despite his attempts to push those thoughts away, it seemed as though he was more accepting of them when he was with him.

 

Eventually Hiccup found a fighting game to play. It was one that he used to play as a child, but it became apparent very quickly that he was rusty since he hadn’t played in years. After a while he eventually met back up with Jack and they played a few rounds of pool before moving onto air hockey, which Hiccup also found out that while playing against Jack that it was like riding a bike. He was very good at the game, great even. Hiccup was very aggressive when he played it too, sending the plastic puck flying off the table a few times and across the room. Even though Jack knew he was no match and because he was a sore loser, he didn’t give up easily and continued to challenge his friend.

 

A dozen matches later, Jack finally threw up the white flag and gave up. He knew that there was no way of him beating his friend and decided that enough was enough. Hiccup laughed as Jack pouted over his losses, but soon cheered back up when Sandy approached them.

 

 _“Jack, here are two passes. You should go check out the laser tag,”_ he signed, handing the bi-color haired man two small yellow sheets of paper.

 

Jack looked at them curiously before signing back, _“When did you get laser tag here?”_

Sandy chuckled, _“It was finished about two weeks ago and opened a few days after that. So far everybody seems to love it. Take Hiccup and have some fun. By the way, I saw that he kicked your ass at air hockey. It’s about time somebody put you in your place.”_

Jack rolled his eyes and shook his head letting a smile creep onto his features, _“Very funny, Sand Man. Thank you for the passes.”_

 

Jack turned back to Hiccup and hold up the two passes, “Sandy is giving us a pass to laser tag, wanna play?”

 

Hiccup’s face lit up, “Sure! Jack how do I sign ‘thank you’?”

 

Jack smiled and held his right hand out flat and placed his four fingers on his chin before pulling his hand about a foot away from his face in a smooth motion. Hiccup studied the motion and copied him the best he could. He only hoped that Jack didn’t actually tell him to say something incredibly insulting to the man he had just met. After he did the swift outward motion he looked at Sanderson who gave him a thumbs up before walking away.

 

“Come on, let’s go try this out!” Jack exclaimed, grabbing his friend’s wrist and pulling him towards the back of the building where they entered a room that was lit with a black light and gave the purple, orange, and hot pink blotches that covered the wall a glowing 3D effect. Hiccup couldn’t help but laugh at the fact that the white part of his friend’s hair was now glowing brightly. They were joined by a small group of kids, no older than the age of twelve, which hurried in and began pulling on their vests. A woman then came into the room and explained the rules—no fighting, jumping on the equipment, or covering the sensors. Even though she tried to split them into equal teams, the children already decided that the game was going to be kids vs. adults.

 

Once the guns that were attached to the vests were activated, everyone was released into a large dark room that was dimly lit with a black light that, like that other room, was painted in a multitude of blotches of different colors that popped out due to the light. There were many different columns to hide behind and platforms to run across and crawl under. What made it difficult was the fact that there was really loud music that drowned out most of the noise, so listening for the kids was going to be difficult.

 

Hiccup took off across the room and hopped over a platform where he had spotted a boy crawl under and once he emerged, shot him with ease before jumping off and running to the right and slipped behind a column before the, now, angry boy retaliated. He could hear Jack off in the distance yelling at a kid, who he figured had shot at him and hit. He slinked off towards the sounds of his protesting friend. As he turned a corner he saw Jack had slipped off to avoid the children who were now on the hunt for them.

 

Just as Hiccup was about to hop onto another platform he heard his sensor going off and turned to see a blonde haired girl standing there with her gun pointed at him. Hiccup smirked and wagged his index finger at her before chasing after her. The girl screamed and ran in the opposite direction and slipped between two columns and jumped onto a high platform. Just as she was about to slip off to the other side Jack came around the corner and started firing his gun at her and hit her after the third try. Hiccup laughed and they swapped a high five before running across the room, having shots fired at them from two directions, Hiccup successfully being hit twice.

 

From the other side of the room he could hear a boy shouting, “The weird haired guy is going to the left!” Then suddenly a barrage of laser noises and suddenly Jack shouting, “These little shits are coming out of nowhere!”

 

Hiccup started chasing after a brunet boy and the blonde girl from before that was trying to be smooth and hide behind a row of columns. He got into a corner and open fired on them, only to have them scream and return fire. Hiccup could help but laugh. He was having some of the most fun of his young life. Jack on the other hand wasn’t as much. It seemed that he was a choice target. He had only seen Hiccup get hit once so far, it wasn’t fair, his friend was like a fucking ninja.

 

He turned a corner and started firing at two boys, hitting them both successfully before turning the opposite way and running. As he backed up around a corner he felt a hand go over his mouth and pull him around until his back connected with the wall. It was Hiccup. His friend put his finger to his own mouth to indicate for him to remain silent. Hiccup was obviously running out of breath, he was panting hard and his forehead matted his hair with perspiration. Jack felt his face heat up, and not just because the room had become quite stuffy, as he stared at the younger male’s viridian eyes. Their proximity was rather close and he could feel Hiccup’s hot breath on him.

 

Without saying a word Hiccup pointed up and Jack followed with his eyes to see that his friend was pointing to a way to get on top of a platform without being noticed. Jack smirked as Hiccup removed his hand, “You are quite competitive,” he whispered loud enough to be heard.

 

Hiccup stepped onto the lower level of the platform and brought his face back down so Jack could hear him, “I’m not going to be beaten by a bunch of twelve year-olds.”

 

Once they both crawled onto the top of the platform they were able to see the whole room and everybody in it. The kids had spread out and were looking for them. Jack and Hiccup looked at each other and started laughing before they both open fire on the kids and received a barrage of “You cheaters!”, “That’s no fair!”, and “How did they even get up there?!”.

 

As the game came to an end, Jack and Hiccup crawled off of the platform and joined the kids back in the other room to return their vests. It was obvious that the kids were sore losers, but Hiccup and Jack didn’t care, they both had a lot of fun. As they both exited the laser tag area they ran into Sandy who asked, _“Did you enjoy the game?”_

Jack smiled and signed back to him, but also spoke to keep Hiccup in the loop of conversation, “Yeah! It was loads of fun. For a while I was getting my ass handed to me, but I personally think Hiccup and I came out victorious.”

 

Sandy chuckled, _“Well, as long as you had fun. That’s what counts. I have to get going. Tell North I said ‘hi’.”_

“Sure thing, Sand Man. Thanks again for the passes.”

 

Jack and Hiccup exited the building and were greeted by the crisp autumn night that caused goose bumps to rise off their skin. It was actually a relief to be outside after they had been in the arcade and played laser tag. As they approached the car Jack glanced over at his friend and saw a melancholy expression on his features, “Penny for your thoughts?”

 

Hiccup’s eyes connected with Jack’s heterochromatic ones and he smiled weakly, “I had a lot of fun…”

 

“But…?”

 

“I wasn’t really ready for it to end,” he replied honestly, his freckled cheeks flushing slightly.

 

Jack was slightly taken aback. He glanced off to the side and turned back to Hiccup, “Me either. If you want there is a park across the street. We could go for a walk…”

 

“Sure. I’d love that,” he said with a small grin.

 

They soon found themselves walking along a paved path that was covered with leaves. Hiccup was glad that Jack decided not to take him home. He kept glancing over at his friend as the silently walked; their foot falls echoed in unison. The park was rather large and was brightly lit along the pathway. From where they were Hiccup could see a small playground and what looked like a community center and beyond that was a large pond. The moon hung high, it was rather large that night and shined brightly over them, causing the dark water of the pond to shimmer under its light. It was a rather beautiful night. The cool air caressed Hiccup’s face and chilled his body making him glad he wore his heavier coat. A small scraping noise to his side caught his attention and he glanced back at Jack he was returning a lighter to his pocket and exhaling a cloud of smoke.

 

“I didn’t know you were a smoker,” he commented.

 

Jack looked at the white filtered stick between his fingers and then over to Hiccup, “That doesn’t bother you, does it?”

 

Hiccup shook his head, “No, I was just saying.”

 

Jack nodded and took another draw, “I only do it occasionally. It’s not like I go through 3 packs a day. A pack can last me a long time. Anyways, I am glad you had fun tonight.”

 

“Me too,” the shorter male replied as he kicked at a rock, “Thank you for bringing me out here.”

 

“It’s no problem. I like hanging out with you,” Jack’s tone was soft, his eyes remaining on Hiccup, occasionally glancing to the walkway, “In fact I wouldn’t mind getting to know you better.”

 

Hiccup’s face flushed. He wasn’t exactly sure what Jack had meant by that, “I would like to get to know you better too.”

 

Jack laughed lightly, “Well, how about we start with your name? You said ‘Hiccup’ was a nickname. So what is your real name?”

 

Hiccup smirked at him, “It’s a secret.”

 

“That’s all well and good,” he said as he stomped out his cigarette, “I’ll just look it up when I get to work tomorrow.”

 

Hiccup rolled his eyes, “Good luck with that. When I signed up I wrote ‘Hiccup’.”

 

Jack groaned in slight frustration, “Come on Hic! Don’t play me like that. I showed you a nice evening; you can at least tell me your name.”

 

“What is this? 20 Questions?”

 

“If you wanna go that way about it, then yes. How about we both ask 20 questions each?” he suggested, as they came to a halt.

 

Hiccup pursed his lips, “Hamish,” he stated simply, “Hamish Horrendous Haddock the third.”

 

“Hamish, eh? Old school. Wait, did you say ‘Horrendous’?”

 

Hiccup chuckled and nodded as he stepped off the walkway and began making his way to a nearby swing, Jack following close behind, “Yeah,” he said as he sat down, “It’s kind of a tradition where I’m from.” Jack sat down beside him and hummed in acknowledgement, urging him to continue. He watched his friend as he seemed to gather his thoughts before continuing, “In Berk a lot of its residences are from Norway and our ancestors go back to the Old Norse Vikings.”

 

“You’re kidding?” he asked in astonishment, “So, you are a Viking?”

 

Hiccup chuckled and shook his head, “I’m not, but my ancestors were. Anyways, our community, though modernized, still hold a lot of the old traditions. They believed that if you are given a hideous name that it would frighten off gnomes and trolls… like their ‘charming’ Viking demeanor wouldn’t do that,” he words dripping with sarcasm, earning a laugh from Jack, “In Berk, we have our regular names that go on our birth certificate and we also have our nicknames that we go by and because I am the smallest of my generation I go by ‘Hiccup’ because if you have a runt in the litter it’s always been considered a Hiccup.”

 

“You seem like a regular guy to me,” the older male commented.

 

“Yeah, well, you obviously have never been to Berk. Everyone there is huge and I am not,” Hiccup rocked the swing and leaned back, “Now it’s my turn. What are your plans? Like do you plan on going to college?”

 

Jack leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, “You mean do I plan on staying at the gym for the rest of my life or try to become a famous rock star?”

 

“If you want to be that black and white about it,” he gestured, urging his friend to continue.

 

The older male let out a chuckle and leaned his back against the swing and crossed his legs, “No, I don’t plan on staying at the gym forever and the band is just a hobby. I do want to go to college. North offered to help me with tuition, but I always feel bad when he offers things like that. I know he has money and he wants to use it to see that I have a brighter future, but I can’t shake this feeling that I already owe him so much as it is and to have one more thing I’m gonna feel like I owe him more.”

 

Hiccup nodded. He could understand Jack’s reservations; it wasn’t completely irrational, “But you said he is your adopted father and that means he is still a father nonetheless, adopted or not. Have you ever considered that maybe you succeeding is payment enough for him?”

 

“Yes and Aster has been telling me the same thing for years. He thinks that because I grew up poor that I take everything North does as an act of charity and it hurts my pride or some shit like that and maybe to a small degree it has merit, but when he says it, it sounds so mean. I know North’s heart is in the right place and I know that he cares about my well-being and future, but I feel like I need to repay him in some way since he has done so much for me,”  Jack carded his fingers through his hair. He looked at Hiccup’s soft expression and figured he probably said too much. He forced a smiled, “But I think if I ever did go to college I would become a physical education teacher. I love children and I love fun.”

 

Hiccup smiled, “Sounds rather fitting for you.”

 

“Almost like a glove,” he chuckled, “So do you have any siblings?”

 

The brunet shook his head, “No, I’m an only child. In fact my parents were lucky that they had me. By what my mother told me they had tried for a couple of years after they got married and had almost given up. She apparently almost lost me a few times and I know that I was born a month and a half early, but after that she wasn’t ever able to have any more children due to high risks to herself and the baby. What about you?”

 

“I have a little sister. She actually looks like a carbon copy of my mother,” he said with a chuckle, but his smile soon faded. Jack missed his sister. He thought about her all the time. She was adopted a few years after their parents died. He was lucky that they were able to remain together for as long as they did. When their parents died they were first sent to an orphanage that catered to both boys and girls, but a few months later she was adopted, Jack was moved to the Burgess Home for Boys, where he spent the remainder of his childhood. Once his sister was adopted he barely saw her. At first she visited every weekend, but that didn’t last long. Soon it became every other weekend, then once a month. After a while, it was only on rare occasions that he saw her.

 

At this point, it had been a little over a year since he had seen her and not a day goes by that he doesn’t think about her and wander how much more beautiful she has gotten. Jack had promised himself that the next time he saw her he was going to get her her own personal cell phone that way he would be able to get in touch with her whenever he wanted.

 

Hiccup looked over at his friend and noticed the blank, thoughtful expression that Jack sported and became curious as to what plagued his thoughts. He knew that Jack had lost his parents and was now wondering about his sister, but chose not to ask about it. He cleared his throat, “So, um, you and Heather…” he trailed off.

 

Jack turned and faced Hiccup, “Me and Heather what?”

 

“Are you two dating?” he asked timidly, almost afraid of the answer.

 

Jack shook his head, “No. Well, I mean, we did, but that was back in high school. We were always better friends than lovers and the break up was mutual.”

 

Hiccup felt a huge weight that he didn’t realize was there being lifted from his shoulders. He couldn’t help, no matter how hard he tried to suppress, but feel a big smile trying to spread across his face. The bi-color haired man rested his arm on the back of the swing, “What about you and your ‘friend’, you know the one who wanted my picture, are you two together?”

 

“Astrid? No. She is an old friend that I have known for years. Like you, we are better friends. I mean, we have never dated or anything,” he explained, “I think you would like her if you met her.”

 

Jack smiled, “Maybe one day I will. What are your favorite things to do?”

 

“That’s easy,” he turned to face Jack and pulled his leg onto the swing, “I dabble in a lot of things—sculpting, quilting, cooking— but I mostly love to write, draw, paint, read, play video games, and build weapons and other gadgets. If you’d like I could show you some of my drawings.”

 

“I’d like that,” he replied with general enthusiasm, “You are a one of a kind Viking.”

 

Hiccup snorted, “Uh-huh, what about you? What do you do for fun besides causing mischief?”

 

“Well, I suppose mischief is my fun, but I do like video games as well. I love singing, obviously, and I love swimming and hiking. Pretty much your run of the mill guy interests,” he retorted, “What is your fondest memory?”

 

Hiccup had to think for a moment about that one. He hadn’t really had any good memories since his mom died. If he had to pick his favorite, it was definitely one that involved her. One memory that really stuck out was this one time, when he was about eight and Valka had yet to be diagnosed, his parents and he had gone on a camping trip for the weekend. Hiccup had a blast the whole time. They went swimming in the lake and went fishing, but the detail that stuck out was their last night there, he and his parents sat and made s’mores by the fire.

 

As his mother went to retrieve her water bottle, Stoick stood from his place that was beside his son and slowly paced towards his wife and began whistling an oh too familiar tune that Hiccup recognized immediately. Valka glanced over her shoulder to see her husband approach her and begin singing the song he wrote for her all those years ago.

 

_I'll swim and sail on savage seas_

_With ne'er a fear of drowning_

_And gladly ride the waves of life_

_If you will marry me_

_No scorching sun_

_Nor freezing cold_

 

A bright smile came onto her face. The apples of her cheeks flushed like a school girl as he learned forward and cupped her face. Stoick’s mighty red beard hid his expression, but it was apparent that he was smiling just as brightly as she was. He wrote this song for his beloved wife in order to purpose to her, but over the years it became more of their own personal theme song and sang it any chance they got. Even though he and Valka had been married happily for nearly eleven years now, he still loved her as he did the day they met. He loved everything about her, faults and all.

 

_Will stop me on my jour-ney_

_If you will promise me your heart_

Valka glanced over at their son who sat and watched them in awe. He always loved when his parents would sing their song along with the gauntly dance that they did when doing so. She turned back to her husband and began to sing; her voice was angelic and complemented her husband’s perfectly.

 

_And love me for eternity_

_My dearest one my darling dear_

_Your mighty words astound me_

They soon crossed their arms and stood opposite of each other as they would change between walking clockwise to counter-clockwise.

_But I've no need of mighty deeds_

_When I feel your arms around me_

 

Soon they were laughing and dancing as they joined hands and Stoick gave her a twirl around him as he leaned down onto one knee momentarily.

 

_But I would bring you rings of gold_

_I'd even sing you poetry_

 

Valka continued to giggle as her husband sang her his promises, _“Oh, would you now?”_ she teased, causing little Hiccup to laugh. His father continued, but added more gusto to the end of the verse.

 

_And I would keep you from all harm_

_If you would stay beside me_

 

Valka and Stoick began to moved, using a multitude of dance styles—contra, folk, swing, country western—all flawlessly mashed into one. Hiccup had tried to learn how his parents did this several times, but quickly learned that he wasn’t really graceful on his feet. He listened to his mother sing tactfully back to his father without missing a beat.

 

_I have no use for rings of gold_

_I care not for your poetry_

_I only want your hand to hold_

Stoick let out a hearty laugh as his brought his wife down in a dip. They swayed back and forth and the bearded man’s booming voice made Valka’s heart flutter when he sang.

 

_I only want you near me_

At that moment they picked up the tempo and sang faster in unison. Hiccup sat by idly watching his parents, clapping along with the tune.

 

_To love to kiss to sweetly hold_

_For the dancing and the dreaming_

_Through all life's sorrows and delights_

_I'll keep your love inside me_

_I'll swim and sail on savage seas_

_With ne'er a fear of drowning_

_And gladly ride the waves of life_

_If you will marry me_

 

Hiccup smiled at the memory as it played in his head. He shared this with Jack, still feeling that twinge of sadness from knowing that he would never have another memory like that again: his mother, alive and healthy and his father, smiling and happy. They were a family, a happy family.

 

“I had never seen so much love between two people. You would think it only existed like that in movies, yet there it was, right in front of me,” Hiccup said sadly, “but things will never be like that again.”

 

Jack cocked an eyebrow, “I’m sure they still love each other. Marriage can change a lot of things, but if it’s as pure as you say, then everything will end up being alright.”

 

Hiccup shook his head, “No, it’s impossible.”

 

“Why do you say that, if you don’t mind my asking?”

 

“Because, like you, I sail on the same boat: the S.S. Deceased Parent,” he replied.

 

Jack’s expression softened. He wasn’t really sure what to say, but he did his best to offer his friend some comforting words, “I’m sorry, Hiccup. I know it’s painful to lose a parent, but that’s why we should cherish these types of memories.” He placed a comforting hand on Hiccup’s shoulder.

 

The younger male looked off to the side, “Memories are nice, but that’s all they are… just memories.”

 

The bi-color haired man lifted his friend’s chin until their eyes met, greeting him with a warm smile, “You’re wrong. I used to think the same way, but a dear friend of mine told me that that’s how they _live_. We keep them alive in our memories and that is how they thrive.” Hiccup smiled as Jack’s cool hand remained on his chin and his eyes shined down at him in the moonlight. His freckled cheeks began to stain with a modest flush and his heart pounded against his chest. He never really liked talking about his mother since she had died. It was even painful to speak about her to Astrid, but it seemed to flow easily with Jack. He wasn’t near ready to speak a word about his life since her death, which that topic didn’t hold one iota of his interest to share, but he felt that this was a good starting point.

 

Jack’s cold hand slipped away from Hiccup’s face and back to his side as he came to his feet, “Come on, let’s walk.”

 

Hiccup nodded and he came to his feet and journeyed back to the walkway, turning a curve that led them towards the pond. The moon made the black water glisten as the water gently rolled towards the bank. It was actually a rather large pond, bigger than Hiccup thought it was, but then again this part of the park was darker than the rest. Jack began to pick up small pebbles and attempt to skip them against the water, “So, do you have any pets?” Hiccup asked, watching Jack throw another stone, trying to continue their previous conversation.

 

“Nah, I thought about getting a dog at one point, but decided against it since I was spending a lot of time away from home,” he replied, gingerly casting another rock before turning back to Hiccup, “What about you?”

 

“Yeah, one smart ass cat named Toothless,” he said with a small laugh.

 

“Toothless?” Jack cocked an eyebrow in curiosity.

 

“Mm-hmm. Back in Berk there was a cove that Astrid and I liked to go hang out at and one day when we got there I heard this really loud meowing and I saw this itty bitty black kitten up on a ledge. I looked all over the place for his mom, but he was all alone, so I climb up there and got him. Since he was such a little guy, his teeth hadn’t come in yet, so I called him Toothless. My dad wasn’t too keen on me having a cat at first, but let me keep him. I nursed him with a syringe until he grew a bit more.”

 

“Aw, Hiccup the Caregiver.”

 

“Ha, well, now he can be a pain in the ass. Ever since we moved here he loves to greet me with a destroyed apartment and demanding of food,” he retorted, “In fact I am expecting it when I get home. Actually, I think I should be heading back before too long. I have class tomorrow.”

 

Jack hummed, almost disappointed, “Alright, well, we start heading towards the car,” he motioned towards the path, “So what are you going to college for?”

 

“I want to become an engineer since I like building things, but I also love to write. It’s a passion of mine. I figured I’d get my degree in engineering and a minor in Creative Writing,” he replied.

 

“That sounds awesome. What do you like to write?”

 

Hiccup shrugged, “Science fiction mainly. I love dragons and fairytales. I know a lot of people see fairytales as childish because of how they are portrayed, but if you ever read any of the original stories you will see that they are anything but. In fact, a lot of them are _really_ messed up.”

 

Jack loved his friend’s passion as he spoke. His wide gesturing and word emphasis made any story he told pretty interesting to listen to. “What makes you say that?” he asked, encouraging him to continue.

 

“Well, I’m sure you have seen the Disney version of Cinderella,” he continued after Jack nodded in affirmation, “in the original the step-sisters were not physically ugly, they were actually quite beautiful. They are called ugly because of their ugly hearts and vanity. They actually cut off parts of their feet to try and get it into the shoe. Their mother telling them that once they were queen they’d never have to worry about walking around again and they’d be waited on hand and foot. But the prince spotted their feet bleeding and found out what they had done. Once he and Cinderella were married and leaving the church, her step-sister’s eyes were pecked out by birds.”

 

“Holy shit,” Jack exclaimed, “You were right, that is a bit messed up. I wonder why she invited them to the wedding.”

 

Hiccup laughed, “I don’t know. It seems like she was gloating a bit. But the stories only get worse. There are some that have cannibalism, rape, and suicide. If I ever want to read a weird, crazy, or messed up story then I read the old fairytales.”

 

As they approached the parking lot where Jack’s car sat he looked over at Hiccup, “You are an interesting person, Hiccup. You really are. I’m glad you woke me up that night.”

 

Hiccup’s face heated up once more as Jack unlocked the doors. He used to always be made fun of for his hobbies and literature choices, but Jack was actually interested in what he had to say. He didn’t shun him for what he liked and would listen intently to his words and now he was saying how glad he was they had met? Hiccup was starting to believe this was too good to be true, “Me too,” he replied and climbed into the car.

 

The ride back to Hiccup’s apartment was nice since Jack had turned the heat on and his stiffened body was able to relax. They continued to talk to each other about their own personal trivia. Once they pulled into the parking lot of Hiccup’s complex, he looked over at the bi-colored haired man and smiled, “Thank you for taking me out. I really did have a lot of fun. We should do this again.”

 

“Well, just let me know and we’ll make another date,” he chimed with a wink.

 

Hiccup unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the passenger door, “I’d like that. Would you want to come up for a minute and meet Toothless?”

 

Jack nodded, “Sure,” he said putting the car in park and turning off the ignition. The two made their way to Hiccup’s apartment. The auburn haired lad was not surprised in the least to enter the main room and flip on the lights to see things scattered on the floor. It wasn’t as bad as it normally was when he arrived home, but he still rolled his eyes at the sight, “Well, this is my humble abode,” he said gesturing to the room, “Sorry about the mess, I told you he loves messing it up.”

 

Jack followed his friend into the apartment and shut the door behind him. It wasn’t a big place, but he figured it fit the needs of one person. Even though there were a few things scattered on the ground, for the most part the place seemed pretty well kept. There were two book cases that sat again the far wall on either side of the plush couch and above the flat screen TV there was a large picture of what looked like a younger Hiccup and his parents, “You have a nice place,” he replied as he walked over to the picture. In the picture they were under a tree at a park. Hiccup, who looked to be around the age of ten, sported a big cheesy grin as he leaned back against a woman, who he figured was his mother.

 

The woman was very beautiful. She looked like she was in her early thirties and had long auburn hair that was worn back in a braid. Here she was wearing a tan tank top and jeans and stood smiling, well more like laughing, next to a rather large man that was leaning down as he would easily tower over them. This man was huge! Maybe bigger than North. He sported a mighty red beard that held several braids. The man’s beard made his expression harder to read, but he was no doubt happy here. Looking at the two, he was able to decipher who Hiccup took after and that was definitely his mother. He did inherit his father’s nose, but also had his mother’s hair and smaller body structure.

 

Hiccup joined Jack as he marveled at the photo. Jack turned to him, “Your mother was very beautiful; you look a lot like her.”

 

“Thank you. Everybody used to say that back home. She was a wonderful person,” he said, not really looking at Jack.

 

Jack smiled, “You must have gotten that from her too.”

 

Hiccup smirked and turned to see Toothless slink into the room, “Hey bud.”

 

Toothless yawned and strutted over to his owner, but stopped once he saw Jack. He backed away a few steps and narrowed his eyes. Hiccup crouched down and held out a hand, “Toothless, this is Jack. Be nice to him.” He gestured for Jack to approach and crouch down as well, only to have Toothless growl, “He won’t hurt you, bud. He is a friend.”

 

Jack became nervous as Hiccup was coaxing the black feline over to them. He was afraid that any second the cat would pounce on him and claw him to pieces, “Should I be worried?”

 

“No, he just doesn’t know you,” He replied as he stroked the cat’s fur. Hiccup reached over and grabbed Jack’s hand and started pulling him towards the cat, “Now, hold your hand out like this and let him come to you,” he instructed, “it helps to show trust if you look away while doing it.”

 

Trust? How was he supposed to know that the little furry creature would just attack him the second he looked away? Jack bit his bottom lips and nodded as he cast his heterochromatic eyes to the ground. Hiccup marveled as Toothless slowly slinked towards his friend, keeping his body lower to the floor. The cat slowly brought his nose to the twitching hand and began to sniff the guy before him. He looked at the two toned head of hair, then back at the hand. He soon began butting his head into Jack’s hand, causing Jack’s tense shoulders to relax as he exhaled a deep breath he didn’t realize he was holding.

 

Hiccup smiled at the sight and slowly back away from the two. Jack turned back and saw a toxic green pair of eyes peering at him as the cat sat up straight. He moved closer and began petting him, being more encouraged as Toothless started to purr. Toothless nipped at one of his fingers, causing his friend to pull away, “Ow!”

 

Hiccup chuckled, “He likes you.”

 

After playing with Toothless a while Jack and Hiccup made their way back to the front door. Hiccup stood there awkwardly, fiddling with his shirt sleeve, “Thank you… for taking me out.”

 

“You have thanked me like eighty times already,” he exaggerated.

 

“Well, I am not used to meeting new people and them doing nice things for me.”

 

Jack shook his head, his smile never fading, “Well, that’s going to change. I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said before looking over at Toothless who was perched on the counter, “Bye Toothless.” Toothless meowed at him and began licking his paw.

 

As Hiccup went to open the door, he was quickly pulled into a tight hug. Jack pressed him firmly against his broad chest and held him there for a moment. Hiccup didn’t know how to react at first, all be could do was stand there and try to take it all in. He slowly lifted his arms up and wrapped them around his friend’s slender waist. He wasn’t sure why this was happening, but he wasn’t complaining. This wasn’t a sideways Bro Hug, it was a warm embrace and it was quite comforting in fact.

 

After a moment or two, Jack pulled away, “Um, what was that for?” Hiccup asked.

 

“Reassurance,” he responded simply, “Everybody needs it occasionally.”

 

Hiccup cocked a dark eyebrow, “Reassurance of what?”

 

“That you are appreciated. See you later, Hiccup.” And with that, Jack was gone, leaving Hiccup standing dumbfounded in the doorway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, when I wrote for Sandy I used this woman who my aunt used to know. She was deaf and when she would sign she had a habit of clicking her tongue a lot. I am not sure if a lot of deaf people do that, all I know is that she did. I also tried my best to describe the motions of sign language. I am not completely fluent in it (Just a little FYI).
> 
> I would also like to thank TheAlchemicFox, who was the inspiration for the “In My Head” scene. XD She has taken that particular video down, but you guys who don’t know of her should look up her “Fridays With Frost” videos.
> 
> And for those who caught it, yes I did do a Final Fantasy X reference.
> 
> Songs featured are “In My Head” (Mayday Parade cover) and “The Dancing and The Dreaming”


	5. 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Where credit is due, I would like to thank my fabulous friend Heather for helping me with aspects of the plot and giving me motivation to finally finish this chapter! Thank you my love! Please check her out. Her username is AmazingRuin (on tumblr and youtube).
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING!!!: This chapter contains a rape scene. Please be advised when reading.

_It had to be close to midnight when Hiccup awoke. He was a bit disoriented and it took him a moment to realize where he was. The room was dark save for the thin line of light that came from under the door and the red glowing numbers on the cheap alarm clock that was on the night stand beside the bed. The room had a heavy feel to it and the air was stale. He could smell the faint scent of weed and alcohol that was creeping under the door. At this point his head was pounding and he didn’t feel much like moving, but he knew that he should have been home hours ago._

_He had promised his dad that he and Dagur wouldn’t be out late, but then again, when he and Dagur were out he usually ended up staying the night—not normally his idea either way. His father knew this and normally didn’t mind him staying, but he had made up his mind that he was actually going to keep his word tonight. He was tired of lying to his father when he told him the he would be back and would leave with the intention of not coming home that night and would have to sneak his way back when his dad wasn’t there or provide another lie to explain why he didn’t come back._

_Hiccup pulled the dirty sheet that covered him off, swinging his legs over the side of the bed, and sat with his head in his hands, trying to wake up. His body was sore and his eyes seemed to be irritated. He also badly needed a shower to wash away the evidence of his and Dagur’s intimacy. Usually Dagur wasn’t so rough with him, but earlier he kept twisting Hiccup’s body in weird positions and didn’t even bother prepping him, leaving the smaller the boy with bruises on his ribs from pressing down on them in order to support himself—as well as a dull stinging in his backside._

_Actually, he was amazed he woke up with his boxers on at all. Ever since Dagur had gotten his own place he had grown used to waking up completely naked. When he was still living with his father he always made sure Hiccup had his clothes on before leaving him alone, not wanting to risk them getting caught or leaving opportunities for questions open. Hiccup didn’t even bother turning the lights on and started stumbling around the room to search for his clothes. He tried to not let Dagur know he was awake and getting ready to leave, trying his best to avoid any creaking spots on the floor or running into anything. He could hear his lover in the next room laughing and chatting with somebody that he didn’t know or rather didn’t care who it was. At this point he just wanted to go home. He was sore and he really didn’t feel like explaining to his father why he didn’t come home. Also he honestly didn’t feel like putting up with Dagur anymore. He had spent a lot of time with him these past couple of days and Dagur was a lot more difficult to be around once he allowed any drugs or alcohol into his system. So he was hoping he could easily slip out and head back to his house unnoticed._

_As he slipped into his jeans, feeling the cold sticky mess pressing against him, the bedroom door opened, allowing the light to pour in. Dagur leaned against the frame with a smirk, “Going somewhere?” the red head man asked._

_Hiccup looked over his shoulder and sighed, “I am going home, Dagur. It’s late.”_

_Dagur shook his head and took a few more steps into the room, not bothering to shut the door while his lover dressed. The older male was clearly not one for modesty and didn’t care who saw whatever was going on whether it was someone dressing, showering, or even as far as him having sex. The first time one of his friends walked in on him and Hiccup, Hiccup thought he was going to die of embarrassment on the spot.  What made it worse was Dagur wanted him to continue even though his friends were wandering freely around the house._

_“Listen, why don’t you stay? I can take you home in the morning,” he coaxed as he placed a hand on Hiccup’s thin shoulder and began to rub the patch of freckled skin, “Besides, I may need you again.”_

_Hiccup rolled his eyes and continued dressing, shrugging off Dagur’s large hand, “Well, you have already_ needed _me twice tonight. I am sore and I just wanna go on home. Plus, I don’t want my dad asking any questions. He’s been doing that a lot recently and—“_

_Dagur interrupted him, “Don’t worry about Stoick. I can take care of him.”_

_He knew arguing with Dagur was a lost cause. It had become apparent that the red head had been drinking some and by the heavy pot aroma that flowed in once the door was opened, he also figured that he had to have taken a part in that as well, “I’m sorry,” Hiccup began as he zipped his jeans, “I am just tired. I just want to go and sleep.”_

_It was a habit the auburn haired teen had gotten into, but he found himself always apologizing for things that didn’t really need an apology. It seemed that Dagur didn’t get as upset when he apologized and found it to be a kind of cushion when he told him any news. However, it didn’t seem to work tonight. Dagur’s eyes narrowed and he was obviously growing annoyed. He snatched the shirt that Hiccup had just picked up, throwing it off to the side, and grabbed at the younger boy’s shoulders, “I said that you are not going anywhere. When are you ever going to_ fucking _learn?”_

_Before Hiccup could protest he was shoved to the floor, his back hitting the corner of the bedframe causing him to yelp in pain, “Dagur please! I’m sorry! I just—”_

_Soon he was not able to breathe. Dagur had kicked him, hard, in the stomach and he felt all the air in his lungs being pulled out. He doubled over, trying to protect himself from any other blows, but it didn’t help much. Dagur gave him a few more good kicks before joining the struggling boy on the floor. Hiccup was grabbed by his hips and flipped onto his stomach. He could feel Dagur yanking his pants down, not bothering to unfasten them first._

_Hiccup was mortified and still unable to breathe properly—coughing and gagging, but it only took a second before his face has pushed down into the dirty carpet and Dagur was slamming into him. The carpet was muffling his cries of pain and pleads to stop, but the only response he got was his lover’s mantra of guttural noises and trying to tell Hiccup ‘how much he knew he wanted it’. But to him it felt like Dagur was trying to split him in half. He knew by how rough he was being slammed into that he had to have been bleeding. Tears stung his eyes and blocked his vision—not that there was anything he wished to see. He felt so helpless. As of right now, all Hiccup wanted to do was lay there and die. He put his trust in Dagur only now to have it come back and smack him in the face. But as quickly as it all began, it was over. He could feel a filling sensation deep within him as Dagur came in stiff spurts and filthy groans._

_The red head withdrew from the younger boy and came to his feet and buckled his pants. He sneered as Hiccup lied on the ground, now huddled over crying and still trying to catch his breath, “Ugh, gods,” he murmured heartlessly. He looked at how pathetic his Brother looked. He thought about how worthless he was when he was like this._

_“How disgusting,” he grounded out with the look of pure nausea, “you really are useless.”_

_This wasn’t really helping Hiccup. He lifted himself off of the floor, trying his best to compose himself, and pulled up his jeans. He wiped the tears that soaked his cheeks with the back of his hand, unable to look at Dagur anymore, no matter how cruel his words were, he just wanted to leave. However, whatever threads of pride he still had for himself caused him to turn to the red head, “I am not useless,” he spoke shakily and the tears now refused to stop falling._

_This only made Dagur laugh, “Excuse you? If you weren’t so fucking worthless your dad wouldn’t have sought me out to man you up,” he pushed his shoulder, “You are an embarrassment. Look at yourself. You’re crying like a fucking pussy. Men_ don’t _fucking cry. How do you expect to please your wife when you can barely please me? No woman wants a pathetic, useless crybaby. Now get the FUCK out of my house, you worthless cunt.”_

_Hiccup felt his heart sink. Even though he didn’t want to believe Dagur, he did. Dagur was there to help him. He couldn’t just let all of this time he had spent with Dagur to go to waste. Defeated he dropped to his knees and grabbed a hold of the red head’s thick hand, “Please, Dagur. I’m sorry. I am trying to change, I really am. Please don’t give up on me.” He continued pleading for a few more moments as Dagur stood silently listening to him. It was one of the most pitiful things he had ever seen—Hiccup sitting there groveling like the miserable little worm he was._

_“Oh gods, just stop already. You are going to make me sick,” he pulled his hand out of Hiccup’s grasp and loomed over him with complete disgust. He thought for a moment before shaking his head, “You are forgiven, Brother. Now, get out of my house,” and with that said he lifted his foot and placed it in the middle of his chest and with a forceful push, kicked Hiccup over, “I mean it, get the fuck out.”_

* * *

 

 

Hiccup sat up in his bed, trying to control his irregular breathing and rapidly beating heart. He looked over to see the outline of Toothless sitting next to his legs with his head tilted to the side with worry. This is not the first time Hiccup had this dream—well, it was more of a memory that seemed to replay in his mind as he slept, and there was no imagination in it whatsoever. It took a moment for everything to catch up with him. He wasn’t in Berk. He wasn’t with Dagur. He was in Burgess, in his apartment with Toothless crawling into his lap.

 

However, it didn’t stop the auburn haired teen from bursting into tears. Every time this happened it was like he had lived it all over again. It was bad enough that he had to take sleep aids to actually be able to sleep at all, but the dreams that followed made him wish he never had to sleep again. He hadn’t thought about that incident in a long time and wanted to know why it suddenly had to come up again. Up until this point his day was going perfectly since he had spent a lot of time with Jack and thought they had made great strides on their road to friendship, only to have his night turn into a living hell.

 

Hiccup scooped Toothless up and cuddled with his furry companion, Toothless snuggling back into him as well. The black cat was not stupid and even though he didn’t understand what happened, he still knew something was wrong and wanted to comfort his human to the best of his abilities. Hiccup tried speaking, even though he knew his cat couldn’t say anything comforting back, he still wanted to put a voice to his thoughts, but all that came out was unintelligible noises and after a while he gave up and just rocked back and forth firmly holding onto his cat.

 

It felt like this had gone on for hours and Hiccup had exhausted himself from crying; his eyes stung and were red and irritated. He eventually laid back on his bed, Toothless taking the spot beside him, gingerly laying his head on Hiccup’s abdomen. All that the crying boy could find himself doing was staring at the ceiling, occasionally his breath hitching in his throat, and replay that occurrence over and over again in his head.

 

What was making this worse was he was beating himself up over it, thinking things like, “ _How could I have let that happen?_ ”, “ _All of this was my fault._ ”, or “ _I’m so stupid. I should have done something._ ” He was aware that victims of sexual assault did often blame themselves, but he felt that in his case, there was more he could have done. This wasn’t just a random incident. He knew the person and was with them intimately. He knew there was indeed more that could have been done but if he were to report it he could have been stripped of the only companion he had at the time since Astrid had yet to move back to Berk, even if it was bad company and him currently being so starved for affection. The loneliness seemed to be far greater than everything Dagur could do to him and after that night he never tried crossing Dagur again. He stayed with him, obeyed him. He didn’t really see himself as a victim at the time. He sometimes still had trouble seeing himself as a victim now.

 

He remembered what happened after scurrying out of Dagur’s house that night, running passed the company he had in his living room as they made crude comments in his passing. He couldn’t go home. Not looking the way he did. Even though, by now, his father had already buried himself in work and their relationship was little to none, Hiccup knew coming home looking the way he did would surely raise some questions. He had thought for a moment before running to the cove that he and Astrid had played at when they were kids. He would just have to tough it out for the night and go home after his father went to work and lie to him if he asked why he didn’t come home, which was nothing new.

 

That night he had plenty of time to reflect on what had happened. He felt so lost, so unsure, so hurt. He knew that what Dagur did was wrong, but he felt like he was to blame, like it was his fault. He shouldn’t have tried leaving without telling him. He should have stayed and made himself useful. Dagur was trying to help him, right? Of course, he was and he loved Dagur, but he wasn’t sure why. He knew that before Dagur came around he was lonely. He would be bullied by his cousin and a few others and his social life was mundane and almost nonexistent.

 

Whenever Astrid had left to live with her father, the only person he would talk to was Fredrick “Fishlegs” Ingerman and occasionally the twins. They were more of acquaintances—fair weather—than friends. They would sit together at lunch and play online games together, but that was pretty much the extent of their friendship. It was only after Astrid returned to Berk that they hung out outside of school and that was only a few times. By that time, Hiccup’s life was already consumed by Dagur and spending time with friends, without Dagur’s presence, was little to none.

 

Any time Dagur found out Hiccup was hanging out with Astrid, he would become furious. It was not a secret that the two hated each other and there was Hiccup, caught between a rock and a hard place. He loved Astrid, always had and always will, but he was also in love with Dagur as well and didn’t want to displease either of them. Even though Astrid had every reason to hate his boyfriend, Dagur only hated her because deep down, Hiccup believed, Dagur knew everything she said about him was true and he prided himself too much to allow Astrid to knock him off his high horse.

 

After a few hours of staring at the ceiling had passed, the sun had begun to rise and the cinnamon haired teen finally drifted off into a dreamless sleep. It wasn’t, but maybe a few hours that had passed that he woke up again, just to drift back off and wake once more. Every time he would reenter the waking world, he would feel that unsettling feeling once more. His eyes remained puffy and irritated, a sign that his tears hadn’t ceased. At this point, Hiccup had abandoned the thought of anymore sleep and got up.

 

His mind was still racing as he sought to have a semi-normal morning. He fed Toothless and tried working on his homework. Hiccup eventually surrendered. He knew there was no way he would be able to concentrate on his work. He began trying to find ways of occupying his mind elsewhere and decided to shower. Even there all he could find himself doing was standing under the hot spray of water, staring at the drain, watching the water go down. Hiccup was even desperate enough to try turning his mind away from the poisonous thoughts by turning the cold water all the way off and have the scalding hot spray hit his back and shoulders. However it was all temporary. Yes, the spray burned and reddened his skin, but even then it wasn’t enough.

 

It was so much harder dealing with these events rather than pretending they never happened. He had numbed himself so long from all of these things, even somehow forgotten about some of them, and now that they have resurfaced it was almost insult to injury. He hurt badly and it seemed that even now with Dagur being so far away from him, it’s like he never left. Dagur was still winning.

 

Hiccup turned the cold water back on and adjusted it to a more comfortable temperature. He quickly finished his shower and went to figure out another way of distracting himself.

 

Eventually Hiccup made his way over to his desk where his laptop rested and tried to write on his current story he had been putting off for a month now, but that too was all for naught. It was almost laughable for him to attempt to work on anything in his current state. All he could find himself doing was pacing back and forth, first in his bedroom, then soon across his apartment. At one point he even heard his neighbors that lived under him yelling for him to knock it off, but he simply ignored it. He did have class that day, but figured it would have been useless for him to go because he wouldn’t be able to focus. He also debated between calling Astrid or Dr. Toothiana, somebody who he felt kinda comfortable talking to about his past, but he didn’t want to worry Astrid and Dr. Toothiana was on holiday. He was sure that she would have still answered his call, but he didn’t want to be a bother to her.

 

For a split second he even thought about calling Jack, but very quickly pushed that out of his head, “No,” he said aloud, mentally slapping himself, “I don’t need him thinking I’m a freak; Like I can’t handle myself. What the fuck is wrong with you, Hiccup?” Even though the sound of Jack’s voice would probably help calm him down, he doubted he would be able to hold himself together for very long.

 

Toothless walked over to his owner and let out a meow, catching Hiccup’s attention, “What is it, bud?”

 

The black feline slinked around Hiccup’s leg and bumped his head against his calf. Hiccup gave a weak smile, “Don’t worry, bud. I am just trying to calm down a bit. I am fine. I was just remembering the day my life went from bad to worse,” he sighed, “and eventually to a living nightmare.”

 

As the hours passed and after numerous attempts of distracting himself, Hiccup finally came to the conclusion that he needed to get out of his apartment. He thought that maybe a change of scenery and some fresh air may help his mind ease and with much of the town he had yet to explore, he presumed he might as well get to know the area. After pulling on a black shirt, dark pants, and his shoes, he grabbed his coat and keys and left. The sun was beginning to set, now barely peaking above the horizon and the chill of the fall air was nipping at the teen’s face. His knowledge of the town was subpar, but still good enough that he wouldn’t get lost since he had memorized landmarks, certain stores, his college, and a few roads.

 

By the time he had reached the inner part of the town it was already dark and his mind had eased some. The sick feeling that had based itself in the depths of his stomach had also dwindled. Hiccup’s attention was drawn to his surroundings. He had seen very little of this side of the town since he had gotten there, but mainly because he lacked a car. He was lucky that he was offered a full scholarship with room and board, because if not then there would have been no way for him to leave Berk. He had a bit of money saved up from when he would work in Gobber’s welding garage.

 

Hiccup was paid well for his work. In fact he was saving to buy him a brand new car. He didn’t want his first car to be some piece of shit that would most likely need a lot of work and end up spending more money then what the car was worth, but that ended up being a pipe dream and he was using the money to live off of. Even though he wouldn’t be getting his dream car any time soon, leaving Berk was well worth the price he was paying.

 

Hiccup turned a corner and found himself in the entertainment district. The entire street mainly consisted of bars, record shops, and clubs. A small grin graced his lips. He thought about what Jack had told him and how he would play in a lot of these clubs. The area was pretty steady with traffic, streets and sidewalks. People were lined up to get in the buildings. He shrugged and started walking towards the first club he saw called Sugar Rush.

 

* * *

 

 

Jack entered the gym and let out a small shiver as his body adjusted to the warmer temperature of the building. He never minded the cold weather, unless it sprung up on him which the current chill in the air had. He had been thinking about the night before, in fact it was all he could think about, and couldn’t help, but feel happy and a little apprehensive at the same time. His mind was still stuck on that feeling he got when Hiccup pulled him close during laser tag. It was a feeling he had never really felt before— his chest tightening, his heart racing, his cheeks flushed, and his breath getting caught in his throat.

 

Even though he had never experienced this firsthand, but knew well enough what it was: a crush. That’s the only possible term that seemed to match what he was feeling. He spent the entire night mulling over it again and again. True, Jack had dated before and was no stranger to sex, but this was something different. All of the women he had dated were friends—people who he felt comfortable around and despite their breaking up, still remained good friends with until today. However, he never once felt like this.

 

Up until now Jack had always known who he was. He liked women. He didn’t have any objections to homosexuality, in fact he was very open to the idea of two guys or two girls being together and when he found out that one of the boys at the orphanage was gay, he encouraged him to be himself and not to be ashamed of it.

 

However, these feelings, when it came to himself, became slightly bewildering. Not because of shame, but because he had always assumed he was straight, but last night when he and Hiccup were close, he wanted to be closer and when he hugged him, be didn’t really want to let him go. It was so confusing. Why did the possible notion of him liking another guy feel so weird? Did other people go through this or was he just over thinking it? And furthermore, why did he want to feel that feeling again?

 

Maybe he was—what was the correct term? Bisexual? He liked both man and women. How about pansexual? What was that again? _‘I think it’s having no limitation to any sexual identity… or something like that…’_

 

Why were there so many terms? Who keeps up with all that? _‘Bisexual, okay. Pansexual, okay. Homosexual, that’s fine too. Heterosexual, no brainer. What the fuck is demisexual? Am I that?’_  This was making his head hurt. He knew there were many terms when it came to sexuality, but where he fit in at on the scale was unknown and he didn’t know where to begin. All he knew was that his mind was in a constant state of Hiccup. Hiccup this or Hiccup that. Why was he so infatuated with this guy he hardly knew?

 

Jack came around the counter and placed his blue hoodie on the chair, allowing the artificial heat to warm his chilled face. He thought about how he was going to see Hiccup later and how weird it may be, even though he felt the crazed butterflies in his body fluttering amok. _‘What if he doesn’t come in tonight?’_ he thought, _‘Should I talk to him about this or just let it go?’_

 

“Well, well, well,” Aster commented as he sauntered behind the counter, interjecting Jack’s thoughts. He honestly didn’t see him approaching and nearly forgot he would even be there, “for a moment I thought you may not come in.”

 

Jack rolled his bi-colored eyes, “I’m only 15 minutes late, Bunny.”

 

The older man shook his head and took a seat in the empty chair Jack just sat his hoodie on, “It’s a wonder you came in at all,” he chuckled, “So, how’d the date go, mate,” he asked crossing his arms.

 

Jack rolled his eyes at the Australian man’s comment and let out a small puff of air, “It wasn’t a date.”

 

Aster smirked and cocked a dark eyebrow. He leaned back in the chair and shook his head, “Well, whatever you call it, mate, how’d it go?”

 

“We had fun,” he replied simply.

 

Aster waited for Jack to continue, but that seemed to be all he was offering. “’You had fun’?” He echoed with a scoff, “Wha—that’s it? What did you guys do? Where’d ya go?” It became more and more apparent to the Australian that Jack was somehow distracted— well more than normal.

 

After a second of silence, Jack snapped out of whatever trance he was in and continued like nothing happened, “I took him to meet Sandy, we played laser tag, took a walk in the park, and then I met his cat.”

 

“You would,” he replied sarcastically, “Well, you are a regular Casanova, Frost. You sure know how to treat a lad on your first date even though I am surprised that Sandy even lets you step foot in there.”

 

“Oh for fuck sake, Bunny!” he spat, sitting down on the counter, “For the last time, _it wasn’t a date_!” His voice a bit more frustrated.

 

Aster’s attention was abruptly torn from the bi-colored haired man sitting on the counter to a loud noise that reverberated throughout the gym, “Dingle,” he seethed under his breath as he saw his and Jack’s co-worker picking up the free weights he had knocked over clumsily as he was trying to put them back on the rack. The Australian shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose in aggravation, “I swear that boy is going to make me land in jail one day,” he turned to Jack, “this is the eighth thing he’s knocked over in the past hour. I swear I’ll strangle him one day,” he finished with a frustrated sigh, receiving a chuckle from the younger male.

 

They watched as the shorter man, who was wearing a ridiculous red beanie, juggle the weights back to their rightful place, dodging a few people as he did so. Dingle was always this clumsy. Aster and Jack always wondered why North kept him around. He never spoke to anyone besides North and he was always knocking stuff over or making a mess. It used to drive Jack crazy when he had to share shifts with him because he never spoke and would sneak up on him all the time. One day Jack came to work with a bell and tied it to Dingle, but he soon realized his mistake because it seemed that the bell made him more irritating.

 

As least there was one thing that Aster and he could agree on, whenever Dingle was there, neither of them had to lift a finger when it came to cleaning. Dingle was always the one to do the majority of the cleaning, even though it took him longer due to him making other messes in the process.

 

Aster stood from his chair and put his fingers in his mouth to let out a loud whistle, “Oi! Dingle! It’s quittin’ time,” he called out. Dingle gave a thumbs-up and headed to the back room to clock out and get his coat. Aster was so happy to see the shorter fellow run out the door before turning his attention back to Jack, who seemed to have spaced out again.

 

He cleared his throat to gain Jack’s attention, “So, you were telling me about your date?”

 

Jack shifted his weight, “Why are you so interested in what we did? If you’re expecting me to tell you we made sweet, tender, passionate love until the sun was peaking over the horizon, then I’ve got some disappointing news for you.”

 

Aster chuckled dryly as he sat back down, “Not what I had in mind, but do go on,” he wagged his eyebrows suggestively and leaned forward as if expecting Jack to spill the juicy details.

 

Jack ran his fingers through his bi-colored hair, “Bunny’s got jokes,” he said but continued after Aster gestured for him to go on. Jack chuckled and decided to play along, “Alright. Well, he invited me back to his place, like I said and I played with his cat some. That was when he came up behind me and started massaging my shoulders. It didn’t take much to get me up and going since it had been a while. Soon we were crashing through the hallway as we made our way back to his bedroom, making out the whole way, throwing off clothes and whatnot. As soon as we hit the bed it truly got wild. I found this spot that made him go absolutely crazy. I’m amazed the neighbors didn’t call the cops from how much I had him screaming.” At this point Jack sported a sadistic smile. The shocked look on Bunny’s face was the absolute best.

 

Aster sat there listening intently, his mouth hanging open slightly. Once his friend finish his “retelling” of his night there was a pregnant pause and soon after all Bunny could find himself saying was a soft, ‘crikey’. This made the younger male start laughing.

 

“All we did was eat, play in the arcade, and did some laser tag, and go to the park and talk. I learned a lot about him,” he finally said, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye that had gathered from his laughter. Jack smiled as he replayed the events of last night.

 

“You know,” Aster said, interrupting his thoughts once more, “he likes you.”

 

The younger male turned his attention back to his friend, “Good to know. I am trying to be friends with the guy after all.”

 

The salt and pepper haired man shook his head and uncrossed his arms, leaning forward on his knees, “No, Jack. He _likes_ you,” he repeated with a bit of emphasis.

 

Jack furrowed his dark eyebrows, “You are just not going to let this whole ‘date’ thing go, are you? You know I was just kidding earlier.”

 

“Nah, mate, I’m being 100% serious here. All jokes aside—he does like you. You didn’t see his face,” he explained, taking a moment to see the intrigued expression sprouting on his friend’s face before continuing, “the way his eyes lit up as he watched you parading yourself around my garage like the bloody show pony you are. We all saw it, Jack. We just didn’t say anything until you guys left.”

 

Jack scoffed, “Nice to know you guys talk about me behind my back.”

 

“Nah, we don’t talk about you, but even if we did it’s not like it isn’t anything we haven’t said to your face,” he chortled, “but we were talking about _him_ behind _his_ back. Heather also mentioned him acting a bit territorial around you when she first met him.” Jack nodded thinking back to the other night when he had first introduced his new friend to his bandmate.

 

Yes, he was a bit agitated, even after Heather had left, but didn’t want to upset him more by trying to pry out the real reason he was upset. Even last night he had asked about what kind of relationship he had with Heather. Again he sighed; it was ridiculous that he was even acknowledging his nosy bandmates’ theory. Of course Hiccup didn’t have a crush on him. The guy wasn’t gay; at least he didn’t come across as gay. Why did it matter anyways? He had gay friends, ‘ _Because maybe you can explore your own feeli—No! That’s not it. I don’t like Hiccup like that. We are_ friends _. I am straight. Hiccup is… well I don’t know what he is, but he doesn’t have a crush on me. End of story. Right…?_ ’ he fought internally to keep this at bay. Now was not really the time for this. He turned his attention back to the Aussie who was looking cryptically at him.

 

“He claimed he was having a bad night, but I dunno. He calmed down after we went and hung out on the roof for a bit,” he finally explained and hopped down from the counter and over to the beverage cooler to grab a bottle of water, his throat had suddenly become a lot drier, “I dunno, Bunny, I think it’s a long stretch to say that he _likes_ me. He hardly knows me. Plus, he’s probably not even into guys.”

 

“Well, maybe you really did give him the ol’ razzle dazzle,” he retorted, “besides, I never said he was gay. All I said was he seems like he was eyeing you pretty hard yesterday. You are a good looking guy, but also someone doesn’t have to be gay per se to have an infatuation.”

 

Jack cocked an eyebrow as he took a drink from his bottle. Bunny did have a point, but what if he was wrong? What if Hiccup just saw him as a friend and that was it? He groaned at himself for starting to think about this again. The conversation lulled and frankly Jack was hoping for it to end soon. Aster never hung around this long normally but he figured that his friend was probably excited for him. Oddly enough, Jack was very capable of speaking to just about anybody with ease and hold conversations well with total strangers, but he seemed to lack the ability to hold onto friends. He didn’t really hang out with anybody outside of the band except for maybe Jonathon, Mavis’s boyfriend, and that was rare.

 

What Aster figured it all boiled down to was from the years he had spent in the boy’s home, he tried to not get his hopes up when it came to making friends. It was common for the children to be moved from home to home while in the system and with that in mind, Jack must have figured that getting too close to anyone would eventually end in him being alone again from where they would move them, place them in foster homes, or would be adopted.

 

It had been a while since Jack had opened up himself like he had with the cinnamon haired boy. Just from witnessing a brief encounter with the two, Aster would have guessed they had been friends for years instead of just a few weeks. What Aster was very surprised in was the said look Hiccup had given him while practicing. It did all make since that the little fellow would be interested in him. First with him being defensive around Heather and then having stars in his eyes and a big crooked smile while watching his bi-colored haired friend move suggestively as he performed. Aster never pinned Hiccup for being gay, but he knew attraction when he saw it.

 

He remembered when the boy first came into the garage how he mainly kept his eyes on Jack and looking as if he had lost himself in another world as he sang. He thought it was actually quite sweet seeing those freckled cheeks of his flush, even if he thought Jack was showing off more than normal.

 

After a few good moments of silence Aster looked around the gym. It wasn’t as busy as before. The majority of the people had cleared out save for a few. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and saw where he had stayed forty-five minutes longer than he had planned and decided to come to his feet. His green eyes found Jack once more lost in thought and Aster couldn’t help, but wonder what it was that the younger male had been so distracted by ever since he had come in.

 

Jack was not normally this quiet and it did make him a bit concern, but he figured that he had already pried enough into his business and decided that it would be best to not bother him further. Since whatever it was still had to be fresh on his mind it was highly unlikely he would talk about it anyways. He knew how Jack was and he wouldn’t talk about his problems until he was ready to. If he needed help he would ask or if he was in trouble he would seek it out. He knew that Jack would probably spend the night on the roof and think about whatever it was and when he wanted to talk about it he would be there for him. However, he had a bit of a feeling that it had something to do with his previous night with Hiccup. Maybe he said something that upset him or vice versa.

 

“Listen,” Aster spoke softly, Jack’s eyes looking up at him curiously, “I’m going to head out. I think I’ve seen enough of this place for one day.” He placed a firm hand on Jack’s thin shoulder, “I’ll see ya tomorrow. Remember to be at the club at five so we can set up. Is the little ankle biter coming tonight?”

 

Jack mumbled in affirmation and Aster gathered his things. He couldn’t help but smile when he heard the other call out ‘See ya later, Cottentail!’ as he walked out the door.

 

Once Aster was gone, Jack hopped down from the counter and walked over to a nearby treadmill. There were only a few people that remained in the gym and it was a while before Hiccup normally came in and he figured he might as well do something to keep his mind from racing. He climbed onto the belt, hit the START button on the machine, and turned up the speed to a nice brisk walk. His mind kept asking the same questions over and over. Since he didn’t have an answer he continued to think of new questions. It was aggravating to be stuck in the never ending loop. His mind had become a broken record. He cranked up the speed more too where he felt his legs beginning to burn.

 

_“Why is this so difficult? Why am I so worried?”_

 

He glanced at the clock and saw more time had passed than he thought, but he didn’t stop. His breath was ragged and his legs were hurting. His chest felt like it was on fire.

 

_“Maybe I am bisexual or whatever-sexual. I mean, I never thought about it too much before.”_

_“Would someone’s gender really keep me from wanting to be with them?”_

 

_“So what if I like him? But what if he doesn’t approve of that kinda thing?”_

Jack started taking in deep breaths in through his nose and out his mouth. He could feel his endorphins racing through his body. His legs weren’t hurting as much and his body began to tingle some as sweat covered his skin. He tried drowning out the internal argument that was pummeling him with questions and uncertainty with the techno music that played throughout the gym. He didn’t care if it wasn’t really his taste in music or not, it was something that wasn’t himself.

 

But it seemed to be harder than he thought to drown out the thoughts, _“How will you ever know unless you don’t try to talk about it?”_

_“You know, he likes you”_ Aster’s voice rang invasively through his mind, _“No Jack, he_ likes _you…”_

_“We all saw it.”_

Running… running… what was he running from? Or running to? His heart rattled, but it wasn’t just from the exercise.

_“The way his eyes lit up as he watched you parading yourself around my garage like the bloody show pony you are.”_

_“You are an interesting person, Hiccup. You really are. I’m glad you woke me up that night.”_ His own voice echoed with content.

_“Me too,”_ Hiccup’s voice rang in.

Jack hit the STOP button on the machine and doubled over, harshly breathing. Aster’s words kept running through his mind. There was no way it was true. It couldn’t be. Why was this _such_ a big deal anyways? Was it because it was new? It’s true he had had plenty of girls like him in high school and he dated a few of them, nothing serious. He even had been hit on by a few guys while performing at the clubs. But the main thing that kept racking his brain was the fact that this here was different and he didn’t know why.

 

_‘Maybe it’s because you actually feel something back?’_ his mind asked.

 

Jack stood upright and walked back behind the counter. He needed to try and figure this out. There was only one person he could talk to about this sort of thing and he had to wait until the gym cleared to do it. So he plopped down in the wheeled chair and grabbed his water bottle before propping his feet up on the counter. He chugged the water and waited for the gym to clear.

 

* * *

 

 

The music was so loud. Yes, Hiccup had expected it to have a decent volume, but not be almost deafening. He didn’t know what to do with himself right away. He wasn’t a big dancer (well he wasn’t a dancer at all. The only time he had ever danced was at the few school dances that Astrid had drug him to in high school.) Plus he didn’t know anybody and had found himself standing off to the side against the brick wall that was littered with posters, band and local business advertisements. He watched the smiling faces of those around him having a good time. The building looked way smaller on the outside verses the inside. It was mainly dark and had flickering multicolored lights that illuminated the dance floor. Off to the side where he was were small dim spot lights that lined the areas along the wall.

 

There were booths filled with groups of people chatting and drinking amongst themselves. Towards the corner, opposite of the entrance, was the bar where he saw people doings shots. There was a room above the bar that over looked the club that the DJ resided. It looked as though there was once glass over the window, but it was long since gone now. Occasionally he would see the people on the dance floor cheer and give thumbs up to the DJ when their favorite song was played. He crossed his arms and pressed his back to the wall. He tried listening to the music blasting through the speakers, but it wasn’t anything he particularly cared for. He looked down at the large ‘X’ that was drawn on the back of his hand, curtesy of the door man once he indicated he wasn’t yet twenty-one by flashing his ID. He felt so out of place there. Not because he couldn’t drink, just in general. Everyone was happy and smiling and there he was, in a club, not dancing, not drinking, not socializing, and alone.

 

He wished that he could have had someone like Astrid or Jack with him. He knew that they would be able to bring the spirit of the party out of him. However, this wasn’t really the best time to be around Jack. His mind, though calmed down a bit, was still racing. He knew that when he finally spoke to Astrid about this she would most likely fuss at him for not calling her and even though he knew she would probably be able to help, he needed to start doing things for himself. He knew that Astrid would always be there for him, however, he didn’t want to have to run to her every time he has a bad day or a reoccurring dream. He needed to have some independence.

 

One problem Hiccup had was when he was stressed, frustrated, and even angry, he never really let it show. Yes, he would unload rounds of sarcasm, but to actually say how he really felt or scream and yell as he would desperately want to, that was harder for him to do. It really took a lot for him to have him reach his breaking point and when he did things could get pretty ugly.

 

It was only a matter of time before he found that when you are broken that you are numb. When Dagur finally broke him it was like nothing really fazed him anymore. So why is it hurting so much now?

 

_‘Broken,’_ Hiccup thought letting out a humorless laugh, ‘ _it’s a funny way to describe a person. Objects are normally described that way, not people, and things that are broken you fix with superglue or buy a replacement part for. A broken person… how do you fix that? Can you fix that?’_ He shifted his weight from side to side in thought and rubbed at the black ink on the back of his hand.

 

‘ _Toothiana seems to think so. She seems to think that I’m not too bad off, that I can one day be normal again. How many people has she fixed? How can she fix me? She said I’m not that bad off, but she doesn’t know the full story! What will she say when she finally sees me for what I truly am? All those things I did. And what if Jack finds out? He’ll think I’m disgusting. He’ll never want to be around someone like me, who would?’_

The music around him, along with the voices and laughter of the crowd, soon began to fade away into a numb silence. He no longer noticed the bodies that once moved in his peripheral vision as his mossy green eyes fixed on the floor, but not actually looking at it. Hiccup’s mind led him back to Dagur, the root of this chaos. _‘How could I let him do all of this? No, he never held a gun to my head, well not in_ that _situation. I am also to blame. I allowed it. I didn’t say “no”. I took it. I took him. I took many people. Many, many people. I did this to myself. Maybe I do deserve this. No, I definitely do…’_

“So, what did he do?” a deep, rich voice rang through and interrupted Hiccup’s thoughts. He shook his head and allowed himself to return to the club, allowed the music and people to once more be heard. He turned and saw where the voice had come from and it was from a man, who was maybe a couple of years older than him who was now standing beside him. He was definitely taller than Hiccup and had bright red hair, that looked sort of orange, that was neatly styled, almost Ivy League looking. His face was longer and had sharp, masculine features that were complemented with his reddish orange sideburns. His green eyes were soft and crinkled a bit as he smiled at Hiccup. It took a moment for him to register that this guy had in fact spoken to him.

 

“Uh,” Hiccup cleared his throat, “I’m sorry, but do I know you?”

 

The red haired man just continued to smile and shook his head, “No, I do not believe we have crossed paths before tonight, but you look like you needed someone to talk to.”

 

Hiccup cocked a dark eyebrow, “Really?” he asked, “And why would you think that?” He wasn’t sure if he meant for that to come out as harshly as it did, but it didn’t seem to bother the man who only chuckled and continue to smile warmly. It wasn’t that Hiccup was trying to be mean, but then again he didn’t know this guy and it wasn’t any of his business what was bothering him. Even if he was just being friendly, this was a personal matter.

 

“Let’s just say that I have an amazing ability to read people,” he replied simply.

 

Hiccup cocked his head to the side, intrigued. He figured since this man was so far the only interesting thing around him at the moment that he would play along, “Then by all means,” he gestured to the man, “please continue,” he finished with a bit of sarcasm.

 

The man’s smile grew a bit as he leaned back against a nearby pillar, “Well, I look around and I see so many people interacting, dancing, drinking, laughing, and having a good time, but then I see you. You are not happy, you are not smiling, and you are alone,” he began. Hiccup rolled his eyes thinking that he must have been full of it or maybe drunk because anybody with eyes could see everything he just pointed out. He didn’t comment on it just yet, but instead let the man continue, “You seem as if you are unsure of what to do with yourself, so you are hiding in the shadows and watching, thinking. So am I right to assume this is your first time?” Hiccup nodded, “You came here to have a change of scenery and be somewhere where you are invisible, but by choice.”

 

Hiccup narrowed his eyes slightly. Maybe this guy was as good at reading people as he claimed he was. He pushed off the wall and approached Hiccup slowly. He was nearly touching chests with him and was looking deeply into his eyes, “You have been hurt and by the look on your face it is not from being angry at a boss or a professor, no, this was by someone who you were close with and trusted. This was a betrayal. Someone has hurt the very core of you.”

 

Hiccup’s heart jumped in his chest as his breath became caught in his throat. He could no longer look at the man before him anymore, “Please…” he held up his hands almost defensively as he backed away, “please stop. I think I’ve heard enough.”

 

The man stepped back some and placed a hand on his thin shoulders, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. For what it’s worth, you are amongst friends.”

 

“It’s alright. I just don’t wanna talk about it anymore.”

 

“Then we won’t. My name is Hans.”

 

“Hiccup,” he replied shyly.

 

“Hiccup,” he echoed back and let out a soft chuckle, “It suits you well, all natural and very cute.”

 

The cinnamon haired teen couldn’t help but smile and shake his head, “Natural, huh? Are you always this _charming_?”

 

Hans chuckled, “Well what can I say? I must have a way with words. And I say natural, because you aren’t here peacocking, just being you and I like that. Say, how about I get you a bit of poison?  My treat.”

 

Hiccup smirked and held up his hand, flashing the bold, dark ‘X’ drawn onto the back of his hand. Hans looked off to the bar, then back to Hiccup, “I won’t tell if you don’t.”

 

Hiccup shook his head, “Thanks, but no thanks. I am not much of a drinker and as much as I wouldn’t mind getting shit-faced I think I should be going.”

 

“So soon,” he questioned while cocking a red eyebrow, “The night still young.”

 

Hiccup shook his head, “To be honest I’m not even sure why I came here. I just needed a distraction I guess.”

 

Hans’s face softened a bit, “Would you like to go somewhere so we can be alone,” he asked bluntly.

 

For a moment Hiccup was flabbergasted. He knew exactly what Hans meant. It had been a while since he had heard someone be as straightforward as this and his mind sort of momentarily froze. He wanted a distraction. He _needed_ a distraction. At least Hans had the courtesy to ask.

 

“Yes,” he replied, “yes I do.”

 

The next couple of minutes seemed to flash by him in a blur. He could now feel the cool night air nipping at the exposed skin of his hands and face as he was firmly pressed against a brick wall. It took him a moment to realize he was now outside of the club, but he could still hear the muffled music and feel the walls pulsating against his back. His eyes slid shut as he moaned softly into Hans’s mouth as the older man pressed a firm and passionate kiss on his lips. He graciously opened his mouth and eagerly tangled tongues with him. Hiccup had his arms draped around Hans’s strong shoulders pulling him as closely as he could so their chests were pressed together.

 

Hans seemed to enjoy Hiccup’s eagerness and slipped off his coat before he did the same to Hiccup. It seemed that even though the night was rather cool, the temperature didn’t seem to bother him as much as Hiccup assumed it would. However those thoughts soon vanished as Hans broke their kiss and moved to the smooth freckled skin of Hiccup’s neck.

 

Another moan escaped from the cinnamon haired teen and he bit his lower lip to silence it as to not draw to much attention to them as Hans nipped at the spot just below his ear. It was a spot that always seemed to weaken his knees and send shivers down his spine.

 

He could feel himself growing more and more turned on as his pants seemed to be more constricting. It was like Hans could read his mind, because he began rubbing the sensitive bulge that formed in the front of Hiccup’s pants, causing his breath to hitch and earning more hushed noises from him.

 

Hans locked lips with him again as his hands lifted Hiccup’s shirt some and began unfastening his jeans. Hiccup pressed into his touch once he felt the older man’s large hand wrap around his hardened cock, whimpering into his mouth once more.

 

Hiccup began to tangle his tongue with Hans again, trying to encourage him. He figured Hans must have been a smoker because he was able to taste the tobacco on his breath. Had this been several years ago, there would have been no way that he would allow the person to kiss him, but for some reason he seemed to be drawn to it. He ran his tongue over as much of his mouth as he could possibly could, taking in the taste, almost savoring it. His hands massaged Hans’s chest before pulling close again. Hiccup’s mind was in a whirlwind. Hans continued to stroke him, mainly keeping his focus on the thick, sensitive head.

 

“Ahh~! Oh gods!” he moaned into Hans’s mouth. That intoxicating mouth.

 

_‘Oh gods, Jack tastes so good,’_ he thought, _‘Jack…’_

 

Hiccup cracked his eyes open and smiled against the swollen lips he had been hungrily assaulting. He saw Jack’s bi-colored eyes were still closed. He ran his palms up his firm chest and tangled his slim fingers into his messy two-toned hair that he had grown to love.

 

He moaned louder into his mouth and gripped harder at his hair as he could feel his peak getting closer. He couldn’t get enough of his touch. He was craving more. He began meeting Jack’s strokes, thrusting impatiently into his hand. Even though he had closed his eyes he could feel Jack smiled against his lips, “That’s right, baby, cum for me”

 

Hiccup’s eyes shot open as a metaphorical bucket of cold water had been thrown on him. That wasn’t Jack’s voice. This wasn’t Jack. He pulled away from the body before him and met Hans’s smile. It was then that guilt began to wash over him. It took a moment before everything was slowly sinking in. He wasn’t with Jack. He was with Hans. He was in the alley outside of the club he had gone to. Oh gods, he fucked up.

 

“Something wrong?”

 

Hans had removed his hand from Hiccup’s pants and was now staring intently at him. What was he supposed to say? It had become very obvious to Hiccup that he didn’t want to be there anymore. The mood, to him anyway, was gone. His raging boner he sported moments ago was very quickly beginning to disappear. Hiccup took a deep breath and quickly shoved himself back into his pants and zipped them up, “Hans, I’m sorry, but I can’t do this.”

 

He watched from the corner of his eye as Hans wiped his hand on his pant leg, not saying anything. Hiccup felt awkward but continued to compose himself, “I’m sorry I thought I could do this but I just can’t.” He reached down to grab his jacket when he was suddenly grabbed by his shoulders and slammed against the brick wall.

 

“Don’t you fucking try and walk away from me!” Hans growled at him. Hiccup felt his breath get caught in his throat as fear began to pulse through him, “You’re not going to come out here and get me hard as a fucking rock and try to walk away!” Before Hiccup could counter, Hans’s fist cracked him in the jaw, sending his head to the side, but only until another blow caught his cheek.

 

Hiccup’s eyes filled with tear as Hans grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him closer, “Now, listen here you little shit, I came out here tonight to get my dick wet and I have every intention of getting just that,” he hissed at him.

 

He shoved the smaller boy to the ground and hovered over him for a moment before unbuckling his belt. Hiccup’s eyes widened. How had he gotten himself into this? This was the one thing he had feared. This was the thing that he had tried to erase from his memory, but here it was, allowing himself to be pulled into yet another situation he probably couldn’t get out of. He knew this was going to hurt, but then again it didn’t have to. Maybe if he agreed to let Hans have his way with him or if he agreed to just get him off, _maybe_ he wouldn’t hurt him.

 

Just as the red haired man started to kneel beside him Hiccup turned quickly to his side, his back against the wall, “Wait! Please… just wait a second,” he whimpered, causing the other man to stop his movements once he was on one knee beside him, his anger still stained on his face.

 

Hiccup sighed, defeated, “How about I suck you off? I promise you, I know what I’m doing and you will not regret it.” His words were empty, even though they didn’t sound like it, maybe because he meant every one of them. Hans took a moment to think about this, his emerald eyes staring intently at him.

 

“Alright,” he replied, his lips curling slightly upward, “that’s more like it.”

 

Hiccup scrambled to his feet and plastered on the fakest smile he could muster as he helped the other stand. Hiccup chewed his bottom lip before kissing Hans once more and turned them to where the other now had his back on the wall. He ran his nails along the front of Hans’s chest and then back over his shoulders, feeling the older man shudder under his touch. Hiccup moved one hand between Hans’s legs and rubbed at his constricted cock, feeling it twitch at his touch. He let out a soft chuckle and parted from their kiss, “Your pants are a bit tight. Spread your legs for me so I can get them down,” he instructed, having Hans oblige. Hiccup kissed him passionately once more, his hands tangling in the man’s soft hair.

 

They parted once more and Hiccup looked at him and smiled, his hands now resting on Hans’s shoulders, “I can’t wait to get that amazing mouth of yours on me,” Hans groaned out. Hiccup then gave his shoulders an encouraging squeeze as his smile faded into an expression of pure disgust. With all of his might and as hard as he could he sent his knee directly into Hans’s groin causing the man to scream in agony and fall to the ground.

 

“GODDAMNIT! YOU FUCKER!!” he cried out, while trying to catch his breath.

 

Hiccup could hear him vomiting, or maybe dry heaving, but didn’t stick around to confirm that. He ran out of the alley as fast as he could, not bothering to grab his coat since everything was in his pockets anyways. He didn’t know where he was going, but then again he didn’t care. He didn’t care that the scrapes on his arms burned, he didn’t care that there was blood drying on his face from where Hans had hit him (most likely from a ring he was wearing), and he didn’t care that he was cold. He had to get away from there as fast as he could.

 

* * *

 

 

The moon was enormous and bright tonight. It was strange how when the weather was colder the moon seemed brighter, but alas, there it was, hanging in the clear dark sky over the gym as Jack stood on the roof silently gazing at the wondrous mass of rock. Throughout his time in the boys Home he often found himself on the roof staring at moon as if he would be able to find the answers to all life’s questions. He found comfort, as if talking to a lifelong friend and with that in mind he also found a lot of his anxiety and stress melt away after having many conversations.

 

Tonight was no different. He had plenty on his mind and had no idea how to even voice these thoughts. However, being on the roof of the gym, wearing his blue hoodie and wrapped in a large, brown fleece throw blanket of his that he had retrieved from North’s office—which he normally kept there for cold nights if he intended on staying on the roof for an extended period of time—and paced around with a cigarette dangling from his lips.

 

It was his third so far tonight, which was unlike him. He normally didn’t smoke so much in such a short amount of time. It was like once the gym had finally cleared, just under an hour ago, he just could not wait to have a cigarette. He wasn’t even out the back door before lighting up the white, filtered stick.

 

By now he should have been able to voice something, but only agitated groans and fingers roughly running through his hair seemed to be all he was presently capable of. His mind had been restless all day and most of the night. He knew the questions, but there were so many of them. Where should he begin? Did he even want to keep thinking about it? Did he even want the answers? He was exhausted from thinking about it. How could he expect to find the answers he sought when he couldn’t even speak them out loud?

 

With another frustrated sigh he flicked the cigarette off of the building and into the parking lot below. He looked back up to the moon and gave a weak smile, “Things have gotten a bit confusing since we spoke last,” he whispered, hugging the blanket closer to his frame.

 

“It’s been a long time, old friend,” he sighed, “and I’m afraid that everything I knew about myself seems to be crashing and burning. I thought I knew who I am,” he paused before correcting himself, “I _was_. I am having thoughts that I never thought were possible. I’m not repulsed by them; I just never thought it to even be in the realm of possibility.”

 

Jackson sat down on the edge of the roof with his legs swinging over the side, drumming his heels against the concrete wall, “I know that whenever I talk to you, you always know how to put things into perspective and shine a new light on it and I could really use your help right now. I am not an idiot. I know what it is I am feeling. I am just not sure why or what to do about it. I mean, I’ve only known the guy a few weeks, but it feels like it’s been much longer.”

 

He looked down at the parking lot to make sure no new cars had pulled in while imprisoned in his thoughts earlier and saw that none had before gazing back up at the glowing rock, “What should I do? Should I talk to him about it? Should I ignore it? Should I make a move? And what does that make me? Am I gay or bisexual or whatever? I have been with women before. I like women. I don’t recall ever really feeling like this per se, but I liked them. Heather and I got along great, still do, same with Rapunzel. I even liked Elsa… the few weeks we were together, but this is nothing like before. I never felt something as overwhelming as this.”

 

Jack reached into his pocket and pulled out another cigarette and put it between his thin lips and lit it. He inhaled the smoke deeply before letting the white cloud exit his mouth. He needed to sleep. He was really starting to feel tired from his lack of rest and constant overthinking. This shouldn’t—couldn’t—be as complicated as he was making it out to be. He hadn’t felt this lost in years. Maybe if he went to sleep for a while he’d feel a bit better. Jack reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He was amazed that he had been on the roof for nearly two and a half hours. However, that amazement shortly turned into disappointment. Hiccup was normally there by now.

 

He turned down at the streets and saw that they were completely empty, the boy nowhere in sight. All he saw was the flashing red traffic lights and the few street lamps that lined the roads. Before climbing onto the roof, Jack had flipped the breaker to the lights that normally illuminated the parking lot, so he had a better view of the sky. He only did this rarely because if he were caught by Aster or North, he would have his ass handed to him about “how it was unsafe for people roaming the parking lot without being able to see”. But he was lucky no one was around. It was Friday and most of the college kids were either out at the clubs or getting drunk at private parties. It was infrequent for people to spend time at the gym on Friday nights. He sighed once more, taking in another deep drag of his cigarette and coming to his feet.

 

He felt a tugging at his chest, knowing tonight Hiccup had decided not to come. He wondered what he could be doing, maybe studying? Hiccup was in school so it wouldn’t be a surprise if he had tests coming up. What if he was avoiding him? What if hugging him last night wasn’t such a good idea? He wasn’t really sure why he had done it in the first place. It was such a small gesture, but if Hiccup was someone who was uncomfortable with any physical contact then maybe he had already screwed up.

 

Jack couldn’t help himself as they said their goodbyes for the evening. He felt so close to him as if breaking down walls he hadn’t even known were there. He could happily open himself to Hiccup and had told him things with such ease—things that took him years to open up about to his best friends. That small moment he hugged him he could have sworn Hiccup felt the same. He could feel those walls in the teen break away as well, he was almost positive of that. Sure they had only hugged for a moment but Jack so wished for it to last forever. He would have held onto him all night if he could, but sadly he couldn’t.

 

Jack, once more looked at the moon, “I know this may sound cliché, but… please, give me some sort of sign because I’m not sure if I’m looking too far into things. I won’t lie, what Aster said earlier kind of gave me hope and I don’t want to chase a pipe dream. What if he isn’t like that? What if I am just fooling myself?” He flicked away the butt of the cigarette and carded his fingers through his hair again and exhaled a cloud of smoke that mixed in with the fog his breath created against the cold air, “Just… please, give me something.”

 

“J-Jack?”

 

The two-toned haired man stiffened as his neck snapped to look over his shoulder to see Hiccup climbing up the latter. Jack immediately noticed that he wasn’t wearing a coat or even a jacket and noticeably shaking. He also was moving a bit more stiffly as he pulled himself up the railing, “Hiccup? Why aren’t you wearing a jacket? Are you trying to get sick,” he asked as he stood and walked over to him.

 

The small smile that was tugging at his lips fell away as Jack noticed the large gash that was going across Hiccup’s freckled cheek and dried blood caked on his face. Even though the light wasn’t that great out there it was quite noticeable. His cinnamon hair was a mess, more than usual, he was out of breath and sweating, despite the cold, and he had several bruises that were forming on his face.

 

“Oh, my god, Hiccup!” his eyes widened at the sight of all this, “What happened to you?!”

 

He didn’t get an answer. Instead Hiccup lunged at him and buried his face into his chest then he started crying his eyes out. It was all of all the fear and panic, hurt and guilt, pain, every bit of it, he was now feeling. With all of his prior thoughts now abandoned, Jack wrapped his arms around him, pulling him in as closely as he could, and allowed him to let it all out. For a split second Hiccup was making a noise that kind of sounded like he was laughing, but it didn’t take long for Jack to realize it was the opposite. He was crying and crying hard. He petted at Hiccup’s hair and whispered things like “it’s going to be alright”, “It’s okay, I’m here”, and “you’re safe now” into the younger boy’s ear.

 

This tore Jack’s heart in two seeing his friend like this—clinging to him as if he were his lifeline and sobbing and shaking uncontrollably into his chest. He wrapped the blanket that was draped around his shoulders around the both of them to try and warm the teen some. He knew that he had to have been freezing.

 

A few times Hiccup tried to speak, but all Jack could hear was muffled unintelligible noises. So the only thing he could do was press him tighter against him, continue to whisper calming phrases at him and began rubbing his back. He eventually heard Hiccup say something along the lines of “I had nowhere else to go” and “I’m sorry”. Jack rested his cheek on the top of Hiccup’s head and continued his mantra of soothing words.

 

He didn’t understand why Hiccup would be apologizing. He had nothing to be sorry for and this worried Jack more. He started to think of what could have possibly happened to him and the only thing he could think of was that he had gotten mugged or someone had attempted to, but he had gotten away before anything too severe happened.

 

He felt the boy in his arms slowly relaxing and his crying beginning to ease. He eventually pulled back some to where Jack was able to see his face. His beautiful green eyes were glassy, red, and irritated from crying and his jaw trembled. Jack cupped his face and wiped away some falling tears with his thumbs before giving a sad smile, “I promise you are safe now,” he whispered, earning a nod from the younger male, “Would you like to talk about it?”

 

Hiccup pressed his forehead back against Jack’s chest. The memories of Hans flooding back once more and he shook his head, “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

 

Jack placed his hand under Hiccup’s chin and tilted his head up so he could see his face, even though it seemed as if the boy was doing whatever he could to avoid his gaze, “You have nothing to be sorry for. However, I think we need to get you to a hospital and maybe call the cops?” The last part was a question because he wasn’t sure of what had happened.

 

Hiccup’s eyes widened, “No! No, I’m fine. I- I just…” he trailed off. He took in a deep, shaky breath as Jack’s hand fell from his chin to his shoulder, “I’ll be fine.”

 

“You sure? I can take you. You may need stitches on your cheek. It looks a bit deep.”

 

Hiccup leaned against his chest and shook his head again earning a defeated sigh from Jack. He felt bad that he was making him feel this way. It was bad enough that he showed up out of the blue all bloody and crying, but him not giving Jack any information, he knew it had to be frustrating, but he could hardly say anything at all without crying, let alone repeat what had actually happened. It was difficult enough to look into Jack’s heterochromatic eyes. He could see the fear and worry in them and as much as he would like to spill his guts there was no way he could ever do that. Not to Jack. Jack could never know what a disgusting person he had allowed himself to become or what he allowed people to do. He couldn’t know the truth. He couldn’t know what disgusting things he had done.

 

“Well, let’s get you inside then. I know it is cold out here. We can also get your cheek cleaned up some. North keeps a first-aid kit in his office,” he spoke softly.

 

Hiccup looked at him, “Can we please stay here for a bit longer? I’ll be fine, I promise.”

 

Jack cocked an eyebrow and glanced to the side of the roof he had just been sitting, then back to Hiccup. He could see the teen still physically shaking but still couldn’t determine if it was from fear or the cold. He did definitely want to get Hiccup inside, but reluctantly agreed, “Okay, but I want you to wrap up in this,” he replied wrapping the throw blanket around the cinnamon haired teen’s shoulders.

 

The two of them walked over to the edge of the roof and sat down side by side. Jack glanced over at his friend seeing tears still slowly sliding down his cheeks accompanied by soft breaths hitching in his throat. Jack himself at this point felt this eyes sting and a few of his own tears slid out. His chest was tight and he felt so helpless. He wanted to help him so badly but he knew that if he pressured him to tell him what had actually happened that Hiccup would shut down and probably not talk to him anymore, even if he wasn’t saying much to begin with.

 

Jack wrapped an arm around Hiccup’s body, feeling him tense some before relaxing. He looked up at the moon, internally cursing the glowing rock as if it were to blame. He knew he had asked for a sign but if this was it then the moon had a sick sense of humor. He rubbed softly at Hiccup’s side, hoping to sooth the tense muscles some. He knew that by now Hiccup’s sides and back had to be hurting from how hard he had been crying and the cold probably wasn’t helping much either. He just wished he could do more.

 

Hiccup stared blankly at the parking lot below them. He felt empty, but at the same time full of emotions that seemed to be all scrambled together and had no idea how to express them. It was too much. He knew Jack was trying to help him and he really did want him to and truly appreciate his attempts to calm him down. He relaxed slightly as he felt Jack’s fingers massage his sore side. It was comforting and nice to have contact like this without feeling sexual obligations following after. Jack seemed to be very good at comforting. Hiccup wasn’t sure if he was naturally like that or if it came from experience. The way he held onto him and allowed him to cry without a single ounce of disgust at his showing weakness, even beginning to shed a few tears himself, and the way he insisted Hiccup stay warm, even giving him his blanket though Hiccup had endured harsher cold weather than this, all this had shown Hiccup how much of a caring person he was.

 

_“When you try your best, but you don't succeed,”_ Jack sang softly, breaking the silence between them, his voice was crisp against the cold air, _“When you get what you want, but not what you need. When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep. Stuck in reverse.”_

His voice wasn’t whinny like the original song. It was even and slightly deeper. The notes weren’t stretched into something he couldn’t hit, each one coming out clean and complemented with a small vibrato at the end of the measure. Hiccup glanced to look at Jack, seeing his tearful heterochromatic eyes looking at him.

_“And the tears come streaming down your face. When you lose something you can't replace. When you love someone, but it goes to waste. Could it be worse?”_ He pulled Hiccup’s small body closer to him.

_“Lights will guide you home. And ignite your bones. And I will try to fix you…”_

Hiccup felt fresh tears flowing from his eyes and down his tear stained cheeks. He hugged onto Jack once more, burying his face into his chest, softly nuzzling into the fabric of his blue hoodie that was slightly moist from his tears. He felt the tightness in his upper body return, but he could also feel the butterflies within him fluttering. He had never felt so safe in his life. He hadn’t felt this much comfort and love from a person since his mother. Astrid was loving and caring. She always made Hiccup feel safe, but this was different. He did feel safe with Astrid. He knew that she would always be there for him but even though he felt safe with her it was almost as if she lacked the experience of comforting another person since, truth be told, the only person she had ever cared enough to comfort was Hiccup. Jack, on the other hand, seemed to know what to do in situations like these. He knew how to make Hiccup feel as if he was completely safe and no harm could ever come to him.

 

He didn’t understand how someone he had just met a few weeks prior could make him feel this way or why they would take the time and patience to comfort him like this. He wasn’t sure what he was going to expect when he came there. Hell, he honestly didn’t even remember running there. It was as if his brain shut down and he was on autopilot. If he had to think about it, if it were Astrid she would have forced him to go to the hospital whether he were actually raped or not. Lucky for him he wasn’t.

 

Jack shifted his position, moving to where he had a leg on either side of Hiccup and wrapped his other arm around him, pulling him as closely as he could. Hiccup smiled a bit as he heard Jack’s heartbeat as his head rested against his chest. He took this time to take in that familiar wintery aroma that Jack seemed to carry with him. Hiccup enjoyed staying like this. Last night when Jack had hugged him it hadn’t lasted as long as he would have liked it to, even though it still held the same love and compassion, this was better. Holding him and being held by him was like being in a safety net and for the first time, in a long time, he actually felt secure.

 

Jack rested his cheek on the top of Hiccup’s head and smiled as he felt the boy melt into his embrace as he rubbed his arm soothingly. He knew that there wasn’t much he could do, but he figured if he could just be there for him then he was helping some.

 

“Thank you,” he heard Hiccup say softly against his chest.

 

Jack kissed the top of his head and closed his eyes as he rested against him, “You’re welcome.”


	6. 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to thank the beautiful and amazing Heather (AmazingRuin) for helping me out with this chapter. I couldn’t have done it without her! But I hope you like this chapter. It clears up the aftermath of what happened with Hans (who I actually felt bad for making into a villainous character. I really love Hans).
> 
> NOTE!: I am aware that Heather is Dagur’s sister in the show, but in this story she is not. I probably would have tied that element into the story, but it would have been just TOO big of a coincidence to have Dagur’s sister show up in a random town and discover Hiccup. Plus, he and Dagur were together and had known each other for years, he would have known he had a sister. So, no, they are not related in this.

It wasn’t like he was expecting himself to fall asleep. No, in fact, he knew with full certainty that sleep would be impossible. Hiccup had figured the gods had hated him by now. After all that happened with Dagur and his mother it was nearly deemed a universal truth. He had run from Berk, fled, in order to find a fresh start. It had all began the day he got that letter in the mail. The first class postage with the pretty school emblem beside the return address, that was the day he had finally decided to break free of Dagur forever.  He never gave his father many details or Gobber for that matter, he only told them not to utter a word of this to Oswald, Dagur, or anyone for that matter (it wasn’t any of their business anyways). He told them the only other person who knew was Astrid and he wanted to keep it that way. He was thankful, despite the skeptical looks he received, that they were men of their word. They vowed to not say where he was going, only answer (if any) that he was in school. His father did at one point try to pry the reason out of him, but the only thing he gave him was a half-assed excuse. Something about how he and Dagur having a falling out and he didn’t wish to continue their friendship. Ever. Something like that.

 

He had prepared all the necessary arrangements online or over the phone for weeks. He was lucky that Dagur hadn’t _needed_ him much around that time or he probably would have missed this chance. Hiccup was determined and prepared to leave his life behind. He was excited. He was scared. He prayed that Dagur never found out. When he told Astrid, she did everything in her power to help him. It took the two of them two days, a U-Haul trailer, her mom’s blazer, and about fifteen hundred dollars of his savings (buying his couch, refrigerator, a few shelves, cutlery, cookware, and a few other odds and ends) and he packed up Toothless, gave his dad a hug, and he was gone. Off to start his new life.

 

He was thankful the school had been generous enough to have some movers help them—mainly the couch, fridge, desk, 56 inch TV (a graduation/college acceptance gift from Gobber) and bed—because there would have been no way he and Astrid could drag that stuff up the two flights of stairs to his apartment. Afterwards, Astrid stayed the night. The two of them huddled in his new bedroom, sprawled out on his mattress and box spring that rested on the floor since the frame wasn’t put together—Toothless curled between them—passed out from the six hour drive and running back and forth, bringing all of his stuff in.

 

It all seemed to be falling into place until Astrid had left. She got up early that morning and after showering she gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek before she left for Berk. The first few nights he spent his time unpacking and decorating that he fell into deep dreamless sleeps. His mind was occupied and he was optimistic. Around the fourth day mark it started hitting him, slowly sinking in. He felt like he was on the run, hiding out. Dagur _could_ find him. Dagur _would_ find him. Dagur would drag him back to Berk. All of his preparations would be for naught. He didn’t want to think about what would happen if he was able to drag him back.

 

He spoke to Astrid every day and she kept assuring him that Dagur knew nothing even though he was indeed looking. Geez Astrid way to make someone feel less paranoid. She felt guilty for telling him, but she wasn’t going to lie either. He would have known she was lying anyways. Dagur wasn’t one to let go so easily.

 

When classes started his mind began to ease some. Yes, the paranoia was still hanging in the back of his mind. That little voice that told him not to sit too close to a window, if he looked in he could see you. Make sure you check the stalls in the bathrooms, he could be waiting when you come out. Eat at places you know he would never go. Yes, it was still there. It was becoming too much already. When he slipped to Astrid that he might as well come back and just continue his life there because the paranoia was eating him alive he could almost feel Astrid’s hand come through the phone and slap him across his face.

 

He received the tongue lashing of a lifetime. For nearly two hours, Astrid chewed him out for thinking something so stupid and proceeded to remind him of all the things he wanted to forget. That was when the idea of therapy came to light. He had only been there about two weeks and despite not really wanting to, he was almost ready to give up and throw in the towel. He told Astrid he didn’t think he could bare standing in a room full of people, even if they were strangers, and say out loud all the things he had endured. No, that was not an option. He did however talk to someone at said place and was referred to Toothiana.

 

Talking to her made everything seem like it wasn’t as bad as it was. After the initial meet and greet, he found opening up to her being easier than once thought, even if it was a little bit at a time and his real session was him staring at his lap, not speaking, for 45 minutes. When she first asked him his purpose for seeking therapy all he had told her was how he was incredibly paranoid because of his ex and depressed because of his home life. His emotions he had bottled in for so long tend to become overwhelming at times and he was grateful that Dr. Toothiana didn’t press him to continue. She was a lot like his mother in so many ways. She was a lot like Astrid too. That was probably why he felt so comfortable around her. She had a lot of patience and had told him a slow release of emotions was better than letting it all out at once. _“Things can get messy,”_ she said.

 

But even now, even after all his progress he had made, he still somehow managed to fuck up. He fucked up. Big time. One slip, one teeter over the edge, not even a full plummet, and he had managed to fuck up everything he had built. It seemed to be a talent of his. His progress with moving forward: gone. His progress with Jack… he didn’t even want to think about that. Dagur was still with him. Dagur was still controlling him. Dagur was still winning. However, he had willingly gone with Hans. That was all him and he couldn’t blame Dagur for that, could he? Still, he wanted to forget. He couldn’t stand it anymore. That dread that resided in him, the guilt and hurt that nestled in the cozy spot within him seemed to grow and press against his vital organs and it hurt.

 

He continued throughout the night to beat himself up worse than Hans ever could. He knew what buttons to hit, every switch to flip. He continued to think of how stupid he was for tipping that scale back the way it came. He should have known. He should have seen it coming. He knew guys like Hans; he used to deal with them all the time. Charming and voices like silk. Touches that could feel so incredibly good but then suddenly feel like the claws of a wild, rabies infested beast that would rip his throat out within seconds. He knew those things. And now here he was beating himself up for allowing it to happen. He wasn’t blind. He knew what Hans wanted the second he spoke to him.

 

The only thing that seemed to keep him above water was when he realized he no longer wanted to be that person. He wasn’t that person anymore. It was hard to keep reminding himself of that, but he had. He had and he got away. That was all that mattered. Right?

 

The only thing is that when he ran he didn’t know where he was going. He didn’t know how to or what to feel. He ran straight into Jack’s arms and cried. He hadn’t cried like that since the day they buried his mother. He cried until his sides and back ached and he just couldn’t get close enough to Jack. He just wanted to melt into him and stay there. But he didn’t. All he did was cling to his trainer so tightly he was amazed he didn’t crack Jack’s ribs. In the back of his head he kept waiting for Jack to push him away or tell him to ‘man up’, but that never came. Jack did none of those things.

 

Jack held him tightly and soothed him. Jack sang to him and gave him the comfort he needed. Hiccup couldn’t figure out why he did those things. Back in Berk Hiccup was conditioned to not cry because men didn’t cry. But Jack wasn’t like them and the thought of him accepting Hiccup for the emotional mess he was had still left him bewildered. He never knew such a caring person existed like that aside from his mother.  

 

Jack held him for what seemed like hours before they finally made their way down the ladder and into the warmth of the gym. Hiccup’s head was pounding and the techno music that echoed through the empty building wasn’t really helping too much, but it was dulled once Jack had him follow him into a room on the opposite side of the gym—‘ _North’s office’_ he assumed. It was nice and warm. His hands and feet had numbed due to the cold and tingled as his body started to return to a normal temperature.

 

The room wasn’t like he had expected—small and dull with flat colors and maybe a filing cabinet along with a cheap desk. But no, it was really big. It had a big flat screen desktop monitor—probably a touch screen—with the gym’s logo bouncing along the screen and mouse resting on the oak desk, a nice big cushioned office chair, and a couch along the opposite wall. There was a small shelf with books (some in another language) and many, _many_ packages of cookies with a small personal fridge beside it. A filing cabinet was behind the desk and most likely held hard copies of employee files and gym memberships.

 

Across the room, by a window, held a large table with a beautifully hand crafted train set. Parts of it looked like blown glass, other parts were stained wood. All Hiccup knew was it looked expensive so he did his best to not touch it.

 

Along the walls were many pictures. Pictures of Jack and Aster at their performances, Jack when he still was a brunet, and some of people he didn’t recognize and a few of Jack and a very large, robust man who sported a long white beard and looked like Santa. This man would fit well in Berk. This must have been North. They were standing in front of the Moscow Kremlin in Russia. He didn’t know Jack had ever been to Russia. What exactly did this man do for a living to be able to afford going to Russia?

 

Hiccup looked closely at the photo and ran his fingers over the glass panel, “That’s my adopted father, North. We went to Russia shortly after I graduated high school and moved in with him. He had a business meeting and it was very boring, but afterwards we went sight-seeing,” Jack explained before Hiccup could even ask.

 

Hiccup gave a weak smile, “Do you or him speak Russian?”

 

Jack nodded, “Yeah, he does. I’ve only picked up a little over the years. That’s where he’s from. You’ll get used to the accent after a while. After being around him and Aster for so long I am amazed _I_ don’t have an accent,” he joked and pointed to the desk chair, “take a seat and I’ll get the first-aid kit.” He disappeared into a restroom after tossing the blanket onto the couch haphazardly and Hiccup took his place in the large comfy computer chair. Hiccup could hear him rustling around in there and smiled slightly. He took this time to close his eyes and lean back in the chair. It was comfortable. He could feel his body relax some, not completely, but some. His palpitating heart was able to go back to a normal steady beat.

 

Here with Jack he felt safe. It wasn’t so much as him thinking Jack could beat the shit out of someone if they were to attack him, even though he was sure Jack would not stand by idly either, but he felt secure in knowing he was no longer alone and had someone who would help him stand his ground if need be.

 

Jack returned moments later carrying a folding chair, the first aid kit, and a warm wet wash cloth. He set everything down on North’s desk and unfolded the chair in front of Hiccup and took a seat. Hiccup had watched him through half-lidded eyes until he opened the kit and grabbed the wash cloth. He sat up and watched as Jack began checking his hands and legs, which were skinned and sore. They burned anytime Hiccup flexed the areas, but be managed to ignore it. Jack lifted his leg across his own and pulled up his left pant leg to view the damage which wasn’t a lot and only had minimal bleeding.

 

Hiccup wasn’t sure when he skinned his leg, he didn’t remember feeling it happen, but if he had to guess it was probably around the same time he hurt his hands. There was a comfortable silence between them. Jack carefully patted the small dots of dried blood away with the warm cloth, his brows furrowed in concentration. He grabbed some antiseptic spray from the kit and sprayed it on the burning area, causing Hiccup to flinch at the sudden contact of the cold spray. Jack mumbled an apology and pulled his pant leg back down before moving to his hands.

 

His hands were worse than his leg. His hands had more dried blood on them and the torn skin of his palms looked a bit deeper. His palms were red and a bit swollen with bits of dirt and gravel lodged into them. He gently ran a finger over the irritated flesh, causing Hiccup to inhale sharply. He scrunched his face some and looked up at Hiccup’s red lined eyes, “I need to get the gravel out or it will get infected.” Hiccup nodded and Jack grabbed a pair of tweezers from the kit, “Just let me know if I’m hurting you, Hiccup.” From the looks of him he had been hurt enough and Jack didn’t want him to have any more pain than he had already endured. With another nod, Jack set to work on pulling the tiny pieces carefully out of Hiccup’s hand.

 

As he watched, he couldn’t help but feel a small smile tug at his lips. He stared at Jack, not at what he was doing, just Jack. He knew he had probably nearly given him a heart attack and frustrated the hell out of him by showing up the way that he had and not tell him what had actually happened, but Jack wasn’t letting that show. He did want to tell him what had happened and still felt that pang of guilt curling around inside his body, but he couldn’t fathom the thought of telling Jack. It wasn’t that he didn’t think Jack could handle it, quite the opposite. It was he who couldn’t handle it. Maybe one day he could tell him, but today wasn’t that day.

 

Hiccup looked down and watched the tweezers pull the gravel out of his hand, Jack occasionally meeting his gaze—most likely trying to measure his face for any pain. It didn’t hurt too badly, a few times Jack accidently pinched the soft dermis, but Hiccup did his best to ignore it, even if his flinch didn’t go unnoticed and would earn another apology from Jack.

 

After the last shard of gravel was removed he wiped the dirt and blood covered areas of his hands until clean and sprayed it with antiseptic spray. When Hiccup let out a hiss from the sudden burn, Jack blew on his hands to help the spray dry faster and sooth the already burning skin. He placed the tweezers back into the kit and grabbed a few pads of gauze and placed then onto the inflamed areas of Hiccup’s hands before wrapping them with bandages and securing them with tape.

 

He looked up at Hiccup who didn’t say a word and smiled some, “You can take those off in a day or two when they scab over. Just treat it like you would a burn,” he said, almost in a whisper. The cinnamon haired lad just nodded at his trainer. Jack took the cloth by a clean edge and scooted closer to Hiccup. He leaned in, taking a moment to brush his hair out of the teen’s face, and brushed the area with the calloused pad of his thumb under the cut on his cheek and squinted slightly, getting a better look.

 

Hiccup felt his face heat up when he felt Jack’s cold fingers touch the hot skin of his bruised cheek. Jack’s pale fingers grazed the areas and slid down under his chin to tilt his head up slightly. Hiccup’s heart was rattling within his chest. He took this time to really take in the fine details of Jack’s face. The brightness of his crystalline eye and the richness of his brown eye. He wondered what he would have looked like without the blue eye—still as handsome, obviously, but would it take away from the subtle mystery about him?

 

There was a small scar in his eyebrow that would normally go unnoticed if you weren’t looking for it. It looked like Jack had purposefully shaped his eyebrows—or had them shaped—to try and hide it. Hiccup didn’t ask about it. He stayed quiet as Jack wiped the blood that was caked onto his face with the cloth, getting a better look at the damage done by Hans. While he gently had his face patted at he watched the concentrated look on his trainer’s face. His beautiful face. Hiccup could see his almost non-existing dusting of freckles that were on his nose and cheeks. Jack had such beautiful skin. He had a natural pale complexion that seemed to have darkened some by either spending time outside or in a tanning bed. Hiccup never figured Jack to be the tanning bed type and assumed it to be from spending time in the warm sun during the summer.

 

“It’s not as bad as I had thought it was,” Jack said, interrupting his thoughts, “so I doubt it’ll need stitches. It probably won’t leave much of a mark either.”

 

Hiccup nodded and swallowed a lump in his throat that he hadn’t realized was there, “You seem to know what you are doing,” he muttered softly.

 

Jack let out a cynical chuckle, “I’ve had plenty of practice from taking care of the kids at the boys Home. I was the unofficial boo-boo healer.”

 

Hiccup smiled a genuine smile. Jack pulled out a q-tip and some triple antibiotic cream and pulled Hiccup even closer until their knees were touching, causing his breath to catch in his throat. Jack was so close. He could feel the other’s breath on his skin with every exhale and he dared to admit he liked it. He was looking into Jack’s softened eyes as he gently rolled the q-tip with the cream on the tip over the cut. Hiccup was so close to him. He knew how right now probably won’t be the ideal time to kiss somebody, but at this moment he wanted to. Not to forget. Not to distract. None of that. He wanted to because he knew now that he was indeed ready to accept the fact that he did have feelings for Jack.

 

He had feelings that leapt over the bounds of mere friendship. He liked Jack. He wanted to be closer to him. That was why he was drawn to this place. He knew Jack was there even when his brain was on auto-pilot. He wanted to be near him then. He wanted to be near him before then but couldn’t bring himself to face Jack because of the horrid memories that were taking over his mind and causing him to be in a near state of panic.

 

Hiccup felt his body being pulled toward his bi-colored haired trainer. He didn’t know when it started but he didn’t want it to stop until his lips touched Jack’s. He didn’t even know if Jack liked guys. The guy could be completely straight. He could turn Hiccup down in an instant, but at this moment he didn’t care.

 

“Hiccup?” He heard, “You okay?”  


Hiccup opened his eyes. Wait, when did he shut them? They were so close, but at this moment Jack looked worried. His dark brows were knitted together and his head was cocked to the side, “You aren’t about to pass out are you?”

 

Hiccup shot back in his seat, “Oh! I-I’m s-s-sorry. I must have gone somewhere else for a moment. I’m okay. I promise.”

 

Jack shook his head and applied more ointment before covering it with a medium sized bandage, smoothing the edges down nice and flat before meeting Hiccup’s eyes, “There you go,” he smiled.

 

“Not going to kiss it and make it all better,”— _‘Where did that come from?!’_ Hiccup teased, “Oh great boo-boo healer.”

 

Jack’s face heated up and his mouth gaped before a sly smile curled onto his lips, “If that is what you want, I can’t say ‘no’, now can I? You cheeky thing, you,” he retorted while placing the items back into the kit.

 

Hiccup laughed a little, “I was kidding.” He wasn’t. He really wasn’t. He really wanted a kiss from Jack. Oh gods, how he wanted to feel his lips.

 

Jack chuckled along with him and closed up the kit and gathered the other supplies. He didn’t know that Jack was thinking the same the whole time he was working on him. He stood and made his way back to the bathroom, returning a moment later after washing his hands. He walked over to the shelf and grabbed a box of chocolate chip cookies and brought them over and sat them between the two of them as he returned to his seat, “Cookie?”

 

Hiccup opened the box and graciously took one, mumbling a ‘thank you’. He hadn’t eaten all day. He remained quiet as Jack went on to tell him about how cookies were his father’s one true vice and when he met him not to be surprised when he shoves an assortment of them in his face. He continued to ramble on and on about different things for a while. Hiccup didn’t really care what it was about; he just listened quietly and munched on the cookies provided to him.

 

After a while, despite trying as hard as he could not to, Hiccup started nodding off. Jack was able to catch his attention and offer to take him home. He really didn’t want to. He wanted to stay there and he wanted to be close to Jack.

 

After practically eating half a box of cookies by himself he reluctantly agreed and he and Jack left the gym, locking the door behind them. On their way back to Hiccup’s apartment they stopped off at a 24-hour store and Jack came back out with a bag of gauze, bandages, peroxide, and tape, telling Hiccup to make sure to keep his wounds cleaned.

 

“You didn’t have to do that,” he stammered.

 

“I know, but I wanted do.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

“You’re welcome.”

 

The ride back to Hiccup’s apartment was quiet and slightly awkward. It was obvious that there was a huge elephant in the room… er, car. Even though Jack had managed to reframe from speaking about it, the whole way there he had this concerned look on his face. His forehead was crinkled and his eyebrows knitted together. It was obvious he wanted to bring up what had actually happened to Hiccup, but bit his tongue.

 

He pulled into a parking spot and shut off the engine, looking over at his friend with a sort of sad smile. He handed the bag of supplies over to Hiccup and unclicked his seatbelt, “I’ll walk you up,” he offered. Well it wasn’t really something Hiccup could turn down. Jack would have gone anyways.

 

He nodded and undid his own seatbelt and they made their way up the two flights of stairs to his apartment. Hiccup’s body was sore and he was exhausted, moving up the stairs was a bit problematic, but he managed. They stood for a moment outside the door and Hiccup rubbed nervously at the back of his neck, “Thank you, Jack,” he mumbled, “for everything.”

 

Jack didn’t say anything, he just reached forward and pulled Hiccup into a tight hug. Hiccup tensed for a moment. His chest tightened and his emotions started getting the better of him. He knew why Jack was doing this. He knew why Jack walked him to the door in the first place. He wanted to make sure he was safe, that he was alright. Hiccup wasn’t as fragile as he looked, but at the moment he did feel like he would break. Tears prickled at his eyes, but he didn’t let them fall. He slowly raised his arms and wrapped them around Jack’s slim waist.

 

He didn’t want to let his bi-colored haired friend go. He wanted to ask him to stay, beg him if necessary, but he didn’t. He pulled away and looked Jack in the eyes. Those gorgeous eyes. He could see the hurt in them, the hurt he put there. Knowing that, it made it that much harder to even look at him. He gave a weak smile and backed away, pulling out his keys, “I’ll see you around.”

 

Jack nodded, not saying a word, and watched as Hiccup entered his apartment, waiting for the door to close before leaving. Hiccup was amazed his place wasn’t trashed when he came home. Toothless had managed to behave himself and jumped off the counter when his human entered, letting out a loud meow.

 

The black cat bumped his head against Hiccup’s calf, “Hey, bud,” he said softly, setting the bag down on the counter before leaning down to pick his furry companion up. He walked over to the balcony door and pulled the shade back, watching Jack climb into his car and leave. He let out a loud sigh and Toothless cuddled into the crook of his neck, “I always seem to mess everything up, bud, everything. I can’t fix something that’s so far beyond repair.”

 

Toothless meowed again, but this time with more of a growl as if disagreeing with him, “Don’t give me that attitude,” he retorted, setting the feline down.

 

After he fed Toothless again, since his bowl had been long since empty, he strolled down the hall to his room and changed for bed. He immediately took those clothes he had been wearing and threw them into the trash, never wanting to see them again. He went into his bathroom and finally got a good look at himself in the mirror. His eyes were puffy and red, the bruise forming on his face was bleeding out under the bandage Jack had placed on his cheek, and his hair was a hot mess. He pretty much looked like shit run over twice, maybe thrice.

 

He shook his head and walked out of the bathroom, unable to look at himself anymore or he would probably get sick. His stomach was churning and he could taste a hint of bile in his throat. It was disgusting. He was disgusting. He didn’t deserve the kindness Jack had shown him. He didn’t deserve Jack. Jack was good and didn’t need poison like him ruining his life like he had already ruined his own. What was he doing to say when he saw him next? What could he say? He knew what Jack wanted to ask him and he knew he couldn’t tell him because it would only raise more questions.

 

What was he going to tell Astrid for that matter? He walked over to the trash can and dug into the pocket to retrieve his phone only to not find it there. Wonderful. Just fan-fucking-tastic. It must have been in his jacket that was left in the alley, which he was never going back to. Well at least he’ll have time to think about what to say to her until he could get himself a new phone. Maybe if he was lucky, Hans wouldn’t find it either. Maybe if he was given any sort of break he smashed it when he landed on the ground.

 

Hiccup returned the pants back into the trash bin and crawled into bed. At least he was smart enough not to lose his wallet or keys. He reached over and turned off the light on the night table and rolled up in the covers like a burrito, Toothless joining him, taking his spot on Hiccup’s pillow behind his head.

 

He didn’t move from that spot for a long time. He stayed in bed for the majority of the day. He didn’t sleep at all despite how tired he actually was. He wanted to sleep, but he was more afraid of what dreamland had in store for him. His mind kept racing about everything: Hans, Dagur, Jack. Especially Jack. The thought of him made things seem not as bad. Like it was just calming to think about him or the thought of spending time with him.

 

He wanted to spend time with him. He wanted to spend _a lot_ of time with him, but now, despite the fact that he does want be to near him, at the same time he doesn’t. He is still afraid that Jack will not want to be around him. He will start asking questions that he doesn’t want to answer. He doesn’t want to make him mad by thinking he doesn’t want to answer because he doesn’t trust him. He doesn’t want one answer to lead to more questions that he couldn’t bare if Jack knew the answer to. It was too much.

 

Throughout the day, Hiccup rolled around in bed, only getting up to feed Toothless, go to the restroom, clean out his wounds, or go lay on the couch. He tried watching TV, but only saw it as useless noise before quickly shutting it off. At one point he tried eating, but couldn’t bring himself to have an appetite and slowly made his way back to his room and flopped down on the bed where he remained for the rest of the day.

 

* * *

 

 

It wasn’t unusual for Jack to wake up with a pounding headache after a gig or his throat parched. Their set last night went fine, well, in his head anyways, all things considering. He hadn’t really wanted to go through with it. It was the first time in a long time he didn’t put his all into a performance. The intrusions in his mind were almost constant. He knew he started a few beats too late or held a few notes a bit too long, but the crowd either didn’t mind or didn’t notice from either being too drunk or high or just tone deaf, but his bandmates sure did. Besides him hardly moving from his spot in front of the mic his heterochromatic eyes were in a daze and this did not go unnoticed either.

 

During their water break Aster had pulled him aside and gave him a once over before checking him for a fever. He had seen Jack like this before, though it had been a while, but nonetheless he was starting to worry about the young man. Jack had swatted his hand away and assured him he was alright and scolded him for messing up his make up (which he didn’t). Speaking of, it had taken Jack longer than normal to get dressed in his black slacks, white dress shirt, and black cardigan that evening. It took him even longer to put on his make-up, which after so long Aster knew Jack had down to a science. What would normally take someone 45 minutes to an hour to do, he had down to an impressive 15 minutes—foundation, powder, smoky eyes, eyeliner, lip balm in that order and perfectly blended. Something was definitely off and Aster knew it. What it was, he couldn’t say for sure.

 

He wasn’t an idiot and figured it had something to do with the little ankle biter he had been hanging out with lately. He was pretty good at judging character and Hiccup didn’t come across as someone who would intentionally hurt someone and he wasn’t sure if this change in Jack was a good thing or not, he just knew that whatever was going on was distracting him big time. The look of uncertainty was constantly plastered on the younger male’s face. Like he was continuously lost in thought and it was actually starting to drive Aster and the others crazy because he wasn’t addressing it. Whatever ‘it’ was. It wasn’t as much as them being nosy or even friendly concern; it was how Jack had suddenly become lost in his own head. Jackson Overland-Frost. The kid who had gotten over his past and moved on. The kid who knew who he was and never doubted himself, sometimes it was kind of obnoxious. He had retreated back inside his mind and had the endless look on his face like he was trying to put together a clock with no instructions.

 

Analyzing each piece and testing it against other parts to see if they fit without any avail. His brow was furrowed and dark circled had begun to form under his eyes. He looked as if he hadn’t slept in days. Which wasn’t a complete misjudgment, he had slept, just not as well as he’d hoped. He looked as if he was pushing himself to keep a “normal” front. Only thing he didn’t realize was that him doing this only made it that much more obvious that that was all it was—a front.

 

What they didn’t know was that Jack was wanting to address it, he really did, he just wasn’t sure how. He knew that his friends wouldn’t shun him; he just could never seem to find the words that he desperately wanted to say. He couldn’t even string together the proper syllables to form said words. Each time he did try it was like a puzzle piece that didn’t quite fit. It hung in the back of his throat and he never seemed to be able to cough it up. How hard was this? It’s not. Not at all. Only thing he had to do was tell them he may have a crush on a certain cinnamon haired teen he had only met a few weeks ago and had been spending a lot of time with recently.

 

But what would that lead to? Did he even like Hiccup that way? Of course he did. Any idiot who took a millisecond to peek inside Jack’s brain could see that he liked the guy more than a friend. The only problem was he didn’t have the fucking balls to say it out loud. And because of that he kept having question after question rattle around inside of his head and try and make sense of something that already made sense. He was denying it. He knew he was denying it. However he was also in denial of his denial. So instead of accepting it, he did what any person in denial would do: Ask the same questions over and over to try and get a different response. He would think of different ways of asking the questions to try and trick himself, but every time the answers stayed the same.  So why hadn’t he accepted it? The million dollar question.

 

Jack knew if he accepted this feeling and realization about himself that he had been wrong and Jack was too prideful for that. Because if he was wrong about this, what else was he wrong about? Had it been so obvious and because he wore blinders for so long that he couldn’t see what was right before his eyes? Was this why he couldn’t hold onto a girlfriend for more than a few months or even weeks? So what if he was wrong about this? It doesn’t mean he is wrong about anything else. He never had a reason to think he had any attraction to men until he was actually attracted to one.

 

He always was accepting of gays, transgenders, or people who didn’t really have a sexuality, gender or even people who identified as both or could be with both. It wasn’t his right to police people’s bedrooms—or bathrooms for that matter. He had met plenty of people with many different identities while performing at the clubs. He would use the proper pronouns, or pronouns of their choosing, and was perfectly fine with that because he never saw them as anything less than a person. He was okay being around anybody and accepted all for who they were and not for what gender or sexual orientation or lack thereof… so why was it so fucking hard to accept himself?

 

He applauded those who had the strength to come forward and accept who they are. Maybe if Jack could find the proper word for what he was it may make things easier for him. He liked Hiccup _a lot_ , but to what extent? He wasn’t for sure. Could he see him still wanting to be around him in 15 or 20 years? Sure, he could see that. Would he kiss him? Hell yeah! He’d kiss his face off if he could, but he wouldn’t admit that out loud. But he would admit that he would do anything to keep him smiling. Seeing that genuine smile, crooked teeth showing and eyes crinkling slightly. Yes, he would do anything to keep that smile on his face.

 

Jack spent longer than he’d like to admit slumped against the back wall of the stage thinking about all of this. One thing he was almost certain of was he’d have to stop making it so obvious that his mind was clouded over with these thoughts. Put some effort into this show. They were getting paid for it after all.

 

They made it through the rest of the night fine. North ended up showing up around the last part of the set and congratulated them on another great performance, which was the better part seeing as Jack had to step up his game since it was obvious that everyone around him was noticing a sudden change in him. There were times that night he had to fight the urge to call Hiccup and check in on him, but he figured that after the night he had that he probably would have wanted to be left alone and sleep.

 

Jack crawled out of bed, looking at the clock on his phone and saw it was close to one in the afternoon, which he considered early since he didn’t get back to his house until nearly five in the morning and after showering, removing his make-up, and dressing in a white tank top and blue plaid pajama bottoms, it was nearly six before he actually hit the plush dark blue comforter on his bed and promptly passed out.

 

He wobbled down the hall on tired, unsteady legs, scrubbing the sleep from his eyes and made his way into the kitchen where the smell of coffee filled his nostrils from where the timer had gone off and the automatic machine came on and brewed him a strong batch of liquid life. Jack scrapped his feet over the cold tile floor as he made his way to the cupboard and pulled out a large white mug with a blue heart on it and poured the coffee. Jack wasn’t what you’d call a morning person, but he wasn’t really a night owl either. However he mainly worked or performed at night so that seemed to be where he fell.

 

Mornings were ok if it weren’t for all the noises of either road work or cars honking every two seconds because the person is too lazy to get out of their car and go knock on whoever’s door, but instead sit in their car and blast the horn where everyone in the neighborhood with hopes of catching a few more Z’s come crashing back into reality.

 

As Jack made his way to the sliding glass back doors, as he did every “morning”, while swirling the sugar and creamer he had added to his beverage idly with a spoon. He pulled the drawn blinds back and peered out at the town just beyond his backyard. It was definitely cold outside, which he actually didn’t mind. Cold weather meant snow. Snow meant snowball fights. And snowball fights meant fun! His lips quirked upward slightly and his brow had softened as he rested against the wall beside the glass door, taking sips of the hot liquid. His heterochromatic eyes traced the floral looking frost patterns that climbed up the glass and began thinking about what today’s agenda held.

 

There were a lot of things he had been putting off due to practice, training Hiccup and of course their little outing. The thought of that made Jack’s chest tighten. He remembered how Hiccup’s forest green eyes had lit up when he saw the arcade. He looked like a child on Christmas morning who just laid eyes on the gifts Santa left.

 

He smiled at the vivid image of how the teen was so competitive as they played air hockey. How his brows furrowed with determination and he bit his lip in concentration. Jack marveled at his skill for the table sport. He didn’t mind that he had his ass handed to him that night. It was clear that his friend was victorious and he gladly handed over all bragging rights.

 

Jack wiped away the condensation that had gathered on the window, distorting his view, and allowed his mind to be drug off once again, only to more murky waters. He felt his heart ache as he remembered Hiccup crawling up the rickety old ladder to the roof, his body trembling, his eyes filled to the brim with tears, his voice shakily calling out to him. Jack remembered that feeling of dread, as if his heart was pulled from his chest and stomped on repeatedly, as he held onto the smaller boy who clung desperately to him and poured his heart out into his chest. Jack had never been good with sad or crying people. He knew he would become just as emotional as they were, given time. It took everything he had that night not to break down and cry alongside him.

 

He wanted Hiccup to tell him what had happened but he seemed like he could barely form words let alone speak them without the harsh sobs covering his voice. Jack was just as lost as he was. He had wanted to help and it seemed to him the only way Hiccup wanted his help was to just be there, even though he, truthfully, didn’t feel like it was enough. He knew something had happened, something bad. It was evident someone had roughed him up pretty good and he wanted to find that person and beat the shit out of them. He wanted them to feel what Hiccup did tenfold. Nonetheless, he could not do that. No matter how tight his chest was or how his blood seared the vascular network of his veins or how at the same time he wanted to cry as much as Hiccup did, all he could do was be there for him.

 

Years ago when he was still in the boy’s Home there were many nights inside of those cheery painted walls that the guise of children living happily together awaiting the day that new parents would come whisk them away into their new happy life—their happily ever after that they read about in books or heard in poems—would melt into the cold heart-wrenching truth that they were alone. Parents who were either in jail, on drugs or faced the same fate his parents did and died.

 

With no family to care for them they all ended up in the same place. Yes they were cared for, but they were lonely children. The people who ran the place could only do so much. They had fifteen or so children to clothe, feed, bathe, make sure got to school and did their homework, and stay out of trouble. It had to be exhausting.

 

These children couldn’t all get the love and attention they craved or needed. There just weren’t that many hands available and Jack being the eldest of the bunch found himself, on many sleepless nights, cradling a small child in his arms that desperately clung to him, crying their eyes out and asking why their parents left them. It was a question he never knew how to answer and really couldn’t answer. He would just sit on the floor beside the child’s bed, rocking said child back and forth, singing to them the few lullabies he remembered. He would sing as softly as he could without waking the other children and did this until the boy would fall asleep in his arms. Once he would put the child back to bed he would go back to bed for however long he could before having to get up and go to school.

 

It never bothered Jack to do this. He loved the children there. They were almost a reflection of his younger self when he was brought there after his sister was adopted, he only wished there was someone there that would have stayed up with him on those painful sleepless nights he endured when he first got there. But he knew the pain these kids were going through all too well. He could see the anguish and loneliness in their eyes, same as he did with Hiccup the other night. Jack figured that this was why his feeling of protectiveness towards the cinnamon haired teen was so strong. As least that is what he kept telling himself. He continued to deny that the pain in Hiccup’s eyes were from something more than familiarity. He continued to deny that he never wanted to see him like that because there was something more than friendship blossoming in his heart (or just in that state period).

 

He took another sip of his coffee and tore his eyes away from the door, he was a bit more awake now and the pending tasks at hand were becoming clearer in his mine. He saw that his house was a mess. His fridge was nearing empty and he needed to wash the clothes that were piling up in his hamper. So many things to do and no energy to do it. He knew soon that North would visit and he didn’t think he could stand seeing the displeased look on his father’s face due to the state of the house he graciously rented to him.

 

These were things he couldn’t continue putting off. He didn’t have to work today, North had always encouraged them to take the day off after a gig, and informed him and Aster that Dingle would be taking over for them and North himself would take the morning shift.

 

Jack was always so impressed with the workload North was able to handle. He had several factories worldwide, owned a gym (which Jack and Aster mainly ran), and still managed to find time for their shows. The man was a superhero. Jack knew that a man by the name of Phil, who he only had the pleasure of meeting twice while visiting the factory in Moscow with North, practically ran the place. Jack had only been out of the boy’s Home for about a month and since North was practically his father and he was living in one of his many spare bedrooms, he didn’t mind the forever plane ride to Russia. He had tried on numerous occasions to slip away from whatever room they had him held up in while North was in a meeting and explore the factory. But it was fruitless, because every time he managed to start looking around Phil would always be around the corner pointing both his index and middle fingers at his own eyes then turn them on Jack as if to say ‘I’m watching you’.

 

Despite the language barrier, Phil always managed to make his point clear and when Jack started messing with things, he would promptly hoist him over one shoulder as if Jack was as light as a kitten and drop him back into the room from wince he came. He had to admire the swarthy man though. He was just as big as North and twice as hairy, but he could keep up with Jack with no problems.

 

Jack didn’t have as much fun at the factory in Berlin. In fact, while there in Germany, he mainly stayed in North’s office and snooped around the massive bookshelves that lined the walls. The trip to Germany didn’t last as long as the trip to Russia, but it was still nice. He had never imagined he would get to see these parts of the world and actually standing there in the flesh was way more amazing than any pictures he has seen.

 

As for the factory in San Diego, he had yet to see it. By the time North had paid them a visit Jack was already working and as much as he would have loved to go and spend time with his father, he wanted to get to work as soon as he could because he felt like a leech while crashing at North’s house. Even though North said it was no problem and he could stay as long as he wanted, Jack felt like since he had always had to share everything it was time he had something to call his own. His own car, his own house, his own bed. Which was when he finally broke down and explained this to North, he was reluctant, but understood. For the longest time Jack never really had something of his own and now was his chance.

 

He still visited North, whether at his house or at the factory, and they would occasionally meet up for dinner somewhere. North also dropped by from time to time and they would also see each other when he would come in the gym. So it wasn’t like he and North were distant, they were still very much in each other’s lives and since North was in town he knew soon that his father would be coming for a visit and he knew that if the place wasn’t in order North would start in on having a cleaning service come by and Jack was perfectly capable of cleaning his own house. It wasn’t that big. It was a three bedroom, two bathroom house and one of the spare bedrooms only had their performance gear in it. The other had a twin bed with no sheets and blue curtains covering the window.

 

The only time the spare bedroom was used was when Aster would pass out after a night of drinking and bad 80’s B movies. Which half the time he didn’t even make it to the bed and just slept on the couch and Jack would throw a blanket over him.

 

Jack finished his coffee and padded his way back to the small kitchen and dropped the mug into the already full sink and turned to the fridge. He wasn’t surprised to see that all he had in there was a bottle of spoiled milk and a wrapped paper plate that had fuzzy lasagna. He sneered at the plate and threw it and the milk away.

 

“Fuck…” he murmured, “guess I better go to the store.”

 

* * *

 

 

The aisles seemed shorter than they normally did as Jack walked around the grocery store, but that was probably due to his mind still being clouded with the same thoughts that have been plaguing him for the past couple of days. He wasn’t even really paying attention to the junk he was throwing into his cart, just whatever he grabbed for first, stuff that was quick to make or could be microwaved before going to work.

 

He didn’t cook big meals for himself often. In fact, it was incredibly rare. Every now and then he would crave certain things and would make enough to last him a few days. Other times would be if, for instance, it was Father’s Day and he wanted to do something nice for North, but even then he never really did anything too fancy. He wasn’t a good cook per se, but he did know how to do somethings.

 

But even now he couldn’t concentrate long enough to even think about trivial things such as this. He was currently standing in the aisle of shampoos staring intently at a purple bottle. His mind was elsewhere thinking about Hiccup. He wanted to see him and talk to him. He wanted to make sure he was okay. He wanted to know what happened to him.

 

He wanted to comfort him properly, help him deal with whatever it was that had happened. It was driving him crazy by not knowing. By the state Hiccup was in it was a no brainer someone beat the shit out of him or at least tried—seeing as he could’ve looked worse. It could have just been a random thing that happened, it had to be. Hiccup had no enemies here; he hadn’t been here long enough. Maybe he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and someone tried to mug him.

 

That was the only thing that made sense. He was convinced. He could understand Hiccup being freaked out, he would have probably freaked out just as much if he were given the same situation. His mind kept rolling around in this train of thought for what felt like ever. Moving from wanting to comfort Hiccup to what happened to him. He knew by now, because it was incredibly obvious, that he cared about his friend. How much he cared for him was still debatable in his eyes. Was he attracted to Hiccup? Well, he couldn’t say for sure. Yes, there were moments where he found Hiccup completely adorable. Little things he did like his competitiveness or the way he concentrates while working out. His sheer will power and eagerness were wonderful and admirable traits.

 

Jack could be attracted to him, not just by his looks either. Which his looks were a nice bonus. He loved his freckles that dotted his body, his forest green eyes that lit up when he was excited about something, when he blushed and his cheeks, tip of his round nose and the tips of his ears would flush, or how his crooked teeth showed when he smiled, Jack couldn’t get enough of that smile. Yes, he was very cute indeed.

 

“You know, no matter how much you stare at it, I can promise you it won’t do a trick,” a voice came, snapping Jack out of his thoughts. He craned his head to the side and saw Aster leaning against a shopping cart at the end of the aisle with a smirk on his face.

 

The salt and peppered haired man didn’t seem to be bothered by the chill that was in the air that day because he was wearing a thin short sleeved, grey shirt that made his tattoos seem darker, and tan cargo shorts, which was unlike Bunny. He was always complaining about the cold. Jack eyed him for a moment before placing the shampoo he held into his cart, “Why don’t you take a picture, Frost,” he joked.

 

Jack returned him a sour face, “Warranty is expired and I don’t need you breaking it,” he deadpanned.

 

“Har har.” Aster maneuvered his cart into the aisle beside Jack and looked at him for a moment before something caught his eyes, “Um, Jack,” he turned the younger man around some and too get a better look at his back, “why is there blood on your hoodie?”

 

Jack’s eyes widened and he gripped the material, pulling it into his view. There were indeed small, dark smears of dried blood on his hoodie before deflating some, “It’s not mine,” he whispered.

 

“Not yours? Whose blood do you have on you? What have you been doing,” he asked, his emerald eyes filled with apprehension, looking back at the spots on his clothing.

 

“Calm down, it’s Hiccup’s,” he answered pulling away from Aster.

 

“Care to enlighten me as to why you have Hiccup’s blood on you?”

 

Jack sighed and leaned onto the cart, “The other night, after you left, he showed up. Something happened to him, he was banged up and freaking out and I suppose in the process of calming him down and cleaning him up he bled on me a little.”

 

Aster’s eyebrows knitted together. He wasn’t quite sure what to say to this. He supposed this may have accounted for some of Jack’s behavior the previous night. He could see the worry plastered on his friend’s face and knew that Jack had a soft heart when it came to people being bullied, even though he knew there was more to it.

 

Aster let out a puff of air, “Come on, you can finish your little tête-à-tête with yourself later, walk with me,” he said as he started down the aisle.

 

“Why?”

 

“Because I have somewhere to be in a little while so I need to finish up my shopping. Plus, we need to talk,” he stated matter-of-factly.

 

“Got a hot date or something,” Jack asked.

 

“Mind your business, Frost. Now come on, I still have some stuff to get,” he said flapping his hand, ushering Jack to follow him.

 

Jack shook his head and they started making their way down the aisle. It wasn’t often Aster requested that they talk and when he did he was trying to pry or scold him over something and this was no different. He was using that tone and had the same look in his eye he always had when this happened. It was times like these he really felt like Aster was the big brother he never had.

 

“So, what all happened when the little ankle biter showed,” he inquired humbly.

 

“Well, I was on the roof and he climbed up there, wearing no jacket, bleeding, and shaking like a leaf. It took a while before he was able to calm down enough to get him inside to clean him up,” Jack explained earning a hum from Aster.

 

“He didn’t tell you what happened?”

 

“No, he could barely complete a word, let alone a sentence. I didn’t want him freaking out more,” he frowned.

 

“Did you call the coppers?”

 

“No, I asked him if he wanted me to or to at least take him to a hospital, but he started freaking out again.”

 

Aster walked silently for a moment, picking up items and dropping them into his cart before turning back to Jack, “Well, sounds like something happened, that’s for sure.”

 

Jack said nothing and continued walking beside his friend. He wasn’t sure what to say and at this point he wasn’t sure he made the right call by not calling the police. He knew Hiccup was scared and if he couldn’t even tell him what happened there was a chance he wouldn’t tell the cops either. Maybe there was an off chance that Hiccup knew who the person or at least seen them before and he didn’t want more trouble.

 

“You think he would object to learning some self-defense,” Aster asked, “I am a black belt after all.”

 

“Well, I doubt it, but then he’ll know I said something to you,” Jack replied quietly.

 

“Not necessarily. If I see him and ask him myself he may just think it’s because I saw what he looked like and it’s obvious that something happened,” he explained, turning to Jack, “besides it’s always good to know how to defend yourself. I taught you and if you can learn then he should have no problem.”

 

Jack smiled and nudged him with his shoulder, earning a snicker from Aster, “That’s up to you. I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea.”

 

“Glad you approve,” he joked, “Now besides this, is there anything else you want to get off your mind?”

 

Jack glimpsed over at him, “What are you talking about? Like what?”

 

Aster’s face fell, “Cut the shit, Frost, it’s been three days since your little outing with Hiccup and ever since that night all you have been doing is staring off into space every time you have a moment you are not talking or being spoken to. Now I get that the night before last was a bit hectic, but I know that’s not all there is.”

 

“Bunny, there is nothing else wrong with me. I’m not shitting you.”

 

“I’m not an idiot, Jack, don’t treat me like one,” he said sternly, “I normally wait for you to just tell me whatever it is that is bothering you, but when you start fucking up our performances that’s when we start having problems and I draw the line. I’m not the only one to notice either.”

 

Jack stopped his strides and glared at Aster darkly, “I don’t recall fucking up our performance! I know our last one wasn’t one of my proudest moments, but it wasn’t fucked up. We all have our off days,” he spoke, jaw clinched tightly as to try and keep his voice down, only to be met with Aster’s emerald eyes being narrowed at him. “Well if you are so good at telling me I have problems, please go ahead and tell me what they are, oh wonderful mind reader,” he spat venomously.

 

Aster smirked and gave a condescending laugh as he continued walking, “Alright, you wanna play that game, fine, have it your way. I think you are grieving.”

 

“Grieving over what? That doesn’t make any sense.”

 

Aster rolled his eyes and leaned onto his cart, waiting for Jack to catch up to him, “What do people normally grieve over, ya gumby? Loss. You are grieving because you have lost something. Don’t give me that look either.”

 

Jack shook his head in confusion, eyebrows furrowing, “What look? You have completely lost me. What do I have to grieve over that I haven’t already grieved over?”

 

He gave an exasperated sigh, shoulders slumping some, “Grieving doesn’t always have to be over a person, ya know. Say, for instance, you thought you knew a person and when you find out something new about them, you ‘lost’ the person you once knew. You didn’t lose the actual person, just a piece of them or an image of them and it can sometimes be just as devastating as losing the actual person. You grieve because of that loss because that person meant something to you,” he explained calmly, “especially when that person is yourself.”

 

Jack’s head snapped to Aster and his eyes widen. _‘Oh shit…’_

 

Aster chuckles at Jack’s speechlessness and cocks an eyebrow, “I told you not to treat me like an idiot. I didn’t just study law, you know, I took courses in psychology as well.”

 

What was Aster trying to say? There was no way he could read Jack’s mind and could tell what had been bouncing around his head these past couple of days. He was jumping to conclusions. Jack wasn’t grieving. What part of himself did he lose? He hadn’t changed, nothing had changed. No life altering epiphany or catharsis here. Why was he suddenly angry? He didn’t like Hiccup like that. He was straight. He liked _women_ goddamnit! There was nothing to grieve over! He wasn’t grieving over the fact that he was wrong about himself. He wasn’t wrong! Right? **_Right?!_**

 

Hiccup was his friend and he cared about him. That’s what friends do. They care. Of course Jack never wanted to see him violently sob into his chest and cling to him as if the world around them was disintegrating. He wanted Hiccup to trust him enough to tell him what actually happened. He wanted to comfort him while staring into those bright mossy green eyes. He wanted to hold him and let him know what everything would be okay and he would make sure of it. He wanted to tenderly kiss him to get his point across. He wanted all of that!

 

Well, that last part isn’t really what friends do…

 

_Fuck…_

 

Okay, well maybe there may be more to it than friendship. Why does this have to be so goddamn confusing? _‘Maybe because it isn’t… you are just making it that way,’_ his mind chimed in _._

Jack closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. When he finally looked back at Aster he could see the older man watching and reading him. He had figured what was bothering Jack. He had his suspicions the night after their ‘date’. He saw the look in Jack’s eyes when he left with the little ankle biter, it was the same as what he had seen on Hiccup.

 

After they had left Rapunzel was the first to speak up. She brought up how cute they looked together and how Hiccup’s eyes looked like they were ready to pop from his skull. Eugene was the one to point out that Jack, despite the fact that he is indeed a show off, was showing off _way_ more than normal. Aster had to agree with him. When Jack was singing it was almost like a one man show up there, but this time he was way more focused on his audience than he had ever been.

 

That was when Heather mentioned how territorial he had seemed when she first met him. She had admitted to noticing almost immediately how tense Hiccup looked when she saw him walk in the door. The hard glares she had received before he had even opened his mouth were what made her want to test the waters a bit. She was pretty perceptive when it came to things like this and trying to see how he would react to her harmless flirting was her way of trying to make sure she was right. His malicious snap at her was what confirmed it.

 

No doubt in Aster’s mind Hiccup held an attraction to his show off of a friend. He could see that Jack liking Hiccup back was probably harder for him to accept than he had thought. Jack was indeed hardheaded and him coming to terms with this was probably something he’d need a little nudge with.

 

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” Jack finally said, seething, after a few moments of silence.

 

“For fuck’s sake Jack!” he yelled throwing his hands in the air, “You need to stop being so damn stubborn. It’s obvious you have feelings for the kid!”

 

Jack’s eyes widened, Aster was being way too loud. They were still in the grocery store for crying out loud. He gave him the ‘keep it down, you idiot!’ look and let out a frustrated sigh, “You shouldn’t make assumptions like that about me! You don’t know if that’s true!”

 

“Wake the hell up, Frost!” the Australian man hissed at him, “I know you quite well. Well enough to know when you like someone. You talk about them non-stop, you have a dazed look in your eyes like you are constantly thinking about them, and you have this sudden urge to spend a lot of time with them. _I know you Jackson!_ ” He gritted his teeth. Hopefully listing off some facts would help Jack see the merit in his words. He had known Jack for years and he was almost insulted that he would brush off what he said as speculation or a theory. He didn’t care how many stares they were getting at this point, he wanted Jack to listen to him.

 

Jack set a heavy glower on Aster, he couldn’t believe they were actually arguing about this—in a grocery store of all places. He couldn’t really say much except deny that what Aster had said was true. He wasn’t ready for it to be true and Aster pressing the matter was pissing him off.

 

“Shut the fuck up, Bunny,” he grounded out, “I am not gay. I do not like Hiccup like that!”

 

Aster gave a deadpanned expression. He was ready to sock Jack in the nose at this point. He bit the inside of his cheek and pushed his cart to the side for a moment and crossed his arms, “Did you tell him?”

 

“Tell him what,” he shot back.

 

“Did you tell him about your parents or your sister?”

 

Jack was taken aback. What business of it is Aster’s to ask what he had told Hiccup? So what if he did?

 

Before he could reply the older man cut in, “I can tell by the look on your face that you did.”

 

“So what?”

 

Aster ran his fingers through his hair and scrubbed at his face, “Jack, you have opened up more to him in the short amount of time you’ve known him then you have to any of your other friends. It took years for you to tell Eugene and Rapunzel and Heather still doesn’t know the entire story. She still doesn’t even know you have a sister and you dated the girl for four months. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing that you told him, but I am saying you have major trust issues when it comes to your personal life and you have taken a giant leap of faith with someone you barely know. You did it for a reason and you are too bloody hardheaded to acknowledge why that is.” He sighed; he had calmed down a little.

 

Jack was speechless. He honestly had nothing to say back to him for the first time in a while. He tensed when Aster rested a hand on his shoulder, “Look, mate, I just want you to be happy and it seems like you are standing in the way of yourself. It’s frustrating to stand on the side lines and watch, it’s almost painful. Just keep in mind that he likes you too,” he said pulling away, “he does and he proved it by coming to you. He could have gone home, to a hospital, or to the cops, but no, he came _to you_. He let you see him at his weakest point. He wanted _you_ to be there.”

 

Jack chuckled, “Aww~ you do care,” he cooed at his friend, only to receive a punch in the arm.

 

“Rack off, Frost.”

 

Jack’s smile fell some, “This is more confusing than I thought it’d be. I don’t know what I feel anymore. I mean, if I’m wrong about who I am then what else am I wrong about?”

 

Aster snorted at this and rolled his eyes, “Thinking like that gets you nowhere, mate, and it is best not to think about it like that. I would say that you should look at it like you weren’t right, but you were also not wrong. You can’t beat yourself up over something you didn’t know or never had the opportunity of experiencing.”

 

“I still don’t know, Bunny,” he said, his voice hushed.

 

“Just give it some thought because not accepting it and living a lie will only hurt the both of you in the end. You should also know by now that we all have your back. We don’t care if you are gay or whatever, as long as you are happy,” he clapped Jack on the back, “Now come on, we need to get you some hair dye for those roots of yours.”

 

As they began back down the aisle, Jack actually feeling a little bit better, he couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious about his hair now, “What’s wrong with my hair?”

 

“Nothing is wrong with it; you just need your roots done is all. They are starting to show a lot,” he replied.

 

“I can make an appointment at the salon and have it professionally done. I don’t want you touching my hair,” he chuckled.

 

“Oh you mean the same salon that burned the shit out of your hair and scalp last time? Real professional,” he deadpanned, “and I was going to have Rapunzel do it, smart ass.”

 

Jack grinned slightly, “Fair enough. Come on or you’ll be late for your _date_.”

 

Aster paused for a moment, “Wasn’t what I’d really call a date unless that’s what you call meeting Sandy for drinks, but you know, I think I can postpone it.”

 

Jack flapped a hand at him, “Nah, go ahead. You haven’t seen him in a while.”

 

“Actually,” he thought for a moment, “if you want, you could come with us.”

 

Jack smiled, “Where would we be going exactly? I’m not 21.”

 

It was Aster’s turn to chuckle, “Have you already forgotten that Sandy _owns a bar_? I’m sure as long as you don’t destroy his place again he wouldn’t mind.”

 

Jack scoffed, “Why is everyone not willing to let that go? It happened one time and I wasn’t even that drunk _or_ the one who destroyed the place.”

 

“Weren’t you the one instigating it and supplying alcohol to a minor?”

 

“Point taken.”

 

Aster peered down into Jack’s cart, “And we might as well get you something to eat that has nutritional value while we are out because you obviously don’t know how to take care of yourself.”

 

Jack rolled his bi-colored eyes, “I can take care of myself just fine.”

 

Aster leaned over to get a better look and laughed, “Really? All I see is junk food and instant noodles. And what is that—ping pong balls? Seriously, Jack? What the bloody hell are you going to do with those?”

 

“I’m going to shove them up my ass,” he said flatly, reaching in and pulling them out, setting them on a nearby shelf. He honestly didn’t remember putting them in there. Then again, half of the stuff he had in his cart he didn’t remember putting in.

 

“Whatever you do in your free time is your business, mate,” he replied.

 

* * *

 

 

Once Jack made it back to his house and put away the groceries he figured he had some time to kill before he had to pick up Aster and meet up with Sandy. He spent the next hour or so mulling over what Aster had said to him. Even though he was a bit pissed at how direct his friend was, he was thankful he was. Aster knew Jack better than he knew himself at times and he could appreciate his honesty even if he didn’t want to hear it.

 

Jack cleaned up and started his laundry that desperately needed to be done. He used this time to think about Hiccup and what he meant to him. Aster spoke about Hiccup’s attraction to him like it was the gospel truth and what he said did make sense.

 

A lot of what Aster said made sense, but he wasn’t going to fork over bragging rights just yet. He wasn’t sure why he was still denying his true feelings. Normally after speaking with the moon it would help him clear some things up, but this time it only brought on more (unnecessary) questions. And what was that that Aster had said about grieving? Was he really grieving over the idea of losing that part of himself he thought he once knew?

 

What were the stages to grieving again? When he lost his parents he and his sister went to see a child psychologist and she told them about the grief stages—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. He knew those stages all too well. He went through them when he lost his parents and he went through them again after his sister was adopted.  Yes, he knew them well.

 

Was he grieving? Denial. Oh yeah, there was plenty of that and then some. Anger. Not as much as denial, but yeah, he did show some of that as well, especially toward Aster. Bargaining. Well, if you wanna count him trying to come up with excuses for what he is feeling and how to categorize his sexuality, then sure. Bargaining was a bit more difficult to place. He had been trying to make sense of everything and trying to convince himself that it couldn’t be true. Okay, check that off the list.

 

Depression. He hadn’t felt depression in a long time. The degree of it was nowhere near as bad as it had been in the past. This time he would say more like intense frustration with a hint of melancholy. He knew he cared for Hiccup, a lot, and seeing him hurt made him hurt. He knew that he had been somewhat sad before all that happened because of the frustration he felt. He wanted all these things and was stopping himself, like Aster had said (another point for you, asshole.). 

 

Yes, he could say he was a bit depressed, just not as much as frustrated. Why was he frustrated? He was frustrated because of all the questions he wanted answers to even though he already knew the answer. He didn’t want it to be true because he would’ve been… not entirely right.

 

_‘So again, why are you not accepting this? Why are you putting yourself through all of this even though you have the answers? Why are you doing this to yourself?’_

 

“Because, I’m afraid…” he whispered to himself as he placed a folded shirt down onto the bed. _‘DING! DING! DING! DING! You win! Congratulations! Now how about we double the prize with a bonus question? It’s a two-parter. Question 1: What are you so afraid of?’_

Jack sat down on his freshly made bed and dropped his head into his hand, rubbing his eyes in frustration, “I’m afraid that if I am having trouble accepting myself than why would he? Or maybe because I could be setting myself up for the worst heartbreak I could ever experience,” he answered the voice in his head.

 

_‘Very good. Now for the final question: Have you finally accepted that you do, in fact, hold romantic feelings for your new friend, Hamish “Hiccup” Horrendous Haddock III?_

Jack grumbled and he began to feel a squeezing around his head. He bit his lip and chewed at the chapped skin. He knew these answers. He didn’t need Aster or anybody to tell him this—he already knew. He was afraid of the answer. He is still afraid of what would happen if Hiccup was turned away by him. Hiccup, the one who initiated these feelings and unjustifiable self-loathing has had him racking every corner of his brain for days, maybe even longer than that. Being turned down by him because he wasn’t interested in men would be a critical blow. Not that he figured Hiccup would run and jump into his arms like a poorly written romantic comedy, but because all of this would have felt like it was for nothing.

 

Jack flopped back onto his bed and pulled a pillow over his face. He wanted to scream, but his head was already starting to feel like it was in a vice. He was doing it again. He was allowing his fear to cloud over the truth. _‘Well, Mr. Overland-Frost?’_

 

“Yes,” he murmured into the pillow, “yes, I have feelings—romantic feelings –for Hiccup.”

 

_‘You are correct! Congratulations, Jackson Overland-Frost! You have won the grand prize! Thank you for playing “5 Stages of Grief: The Game You Didn’t Even Realize You Were Playing”!’_

 

Why did saying it out loud feel like a 5 ton weight was suddenly lifted off of him? He sighed and squeezed the pillow into a tight hug against his body. There was the truth. The truth that Jack had been running from since the first time he had actually spent with Hiccup up on the roof. The night he snapped at Heather and lied about the reason. The night that stupid voice in his head started teasing him about the feelings he was nowhere near ready to accept. There they were.

 

“I figured all you needed was a little push,” a voice came from the doorway. Jack shot up with wide eyes to see Aster leaning against the door frame munching on a crisp baby carrot, “now are we going to go or do you need more time making out with the pillow?”

 

“What the hell are you doing here?!” Jack practically screeched, “How did you even get in?”

 

Aster took another loud chomp out of the carrot and chuckled. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of spare keys that Jack had given him and jingled them in the air as a reminder before placing them into his jean pocket, “Well, you were supposed to be over at my house an hour ago and I tried calling, but I kept getting your stupid voicemail. So I figured you fell asleep and I decided to come over, but when I came in I heard you in here talking away to yourself and the rest is history.”

 

“Goddamnit,” Jack grumbled, his cheeks flaming with embarrassment, “I didn’t want anybody to hear that you asshat. You don’t just waltz into somebody’s house, eat their food and—”

 

Aster gave a shit eating grin, “and listening to them confess their love into a pillow,” he interrupted, earning a glare from Jack, “it didn’t take you as long as I thought it would, so you have that going for ya.”

 

“Fuck you, Bunny.”

 

“According to your pillow talk, I’m not the one you fancy,” he shot back, “by the way why haven’t you gone to see him or at least call?”

 

Jack looked at the ground, grimacing. The thought of visiting Hiccup was something he had wanted to do all day, but he found that situation would be a bit awkward for the both of them. Jack knew Hiccup probably wouldn’t want to talk about it and he wasn’t really sure what to even say to him after a night like that. He told this to Aster and surprisingly he understood, even if he found it to be a bit silly. He knew Jack was a caring person but he knew he wanted a better excuse then ‘just came by to see if you are still alive’.

 

Aster sighed, deciding to end this part of the conversation, “Come on and get dressed. We are running behind enough as it is. Unless you wanna spend a romantic evening with your pillow, in that case I won’t tell Hiccup, he might get jealous.”

 

Jack threw said pillow at Aster’s face, but barely missed, as he let out a bark of laughter and made his way down the hall, probably to eat more of his food. Jack called out to him that he would be ready shortly and started looking for something decent to wear seeing as the majority of his clothes were still being cleaned. He ended up settling on a simple short sleeved, turquois shirt with a white thermal and jeans. He grabbed his freshly cleaned hoodie and after pocketing his keys, phone, and wallet they were out the door.

 

* * *

 

 

“Why are we here,” Aster questioned from the passenger seat.

 

Jack pulled into his regular parking space at the gym and shut off the ignition, “I left my driver’s license here. I dropped my wallet the other night when I was coming down the ladder and apparently my license fell out. North called earlier and said Dingle found it while taking out the trash,” he replied.

 

“What?! You’ve been driving around all day without a license? Bloody hell,” he continued to gripe as he and Jack unclicked their seatbelts and got out of the car. He ignored the older man because it was all stuff he had heard before, but gave the occasional hum or grunt so that Aster thought he was listening.

 

They were greeted by a booming ‘hello’ by North who was returning from the supply closet and making his way back to the front desk carrying drinks to replenish the cooler as they entered the gym. He sat the mass of drinks that had been cradled in his large arms down on the counter and dusted off his red button-shirt, “I give you off day and you still show, such commitment,” he joked.

 

Jack smiled at his father and Aster rolled his eyes, “Genius here,” he jerked his thumb to Jack, “had been driving without his license for god knows how long and we’re just here to pick it up.”

 

North tutted at Jack with a wagging finger, “You know better than that, Jackson,” he stated with an accusing look which made Jack throw his hands up in surrender, “you are lucky Dingle bring it to me.”

 

Aster cocked an eyebrow at the young man next to him, “He is lucky it was his license instead of his bank card.”

 

It was Jack’s turn to roll his eyes, “Okay, I get it. My bad. Don’t you two sit there and talk about me like I’m not here.”

 

North laughed at this and pointed towards the back of the building, “Good. It’s in my office, top drawer,” he said, turning to start placing the drinks into the cooler and Jack sprinted off.

 

Once he was gone North turned to Aster who was now leaning against the counter, “So where are you two going,” he asked.

 

Aster shrugged and stretched his limbs, “We were going to meet up with Sandy and get something to eat.”

 

North hummed, “So, I am guessing you have talk with him, yes?”

 

Aster chuckled, “Oh yeah. In the middle of the grocery store of all places. I felt like I was scolding a five-year-old after catching them sticking candy in their pockets.”

 

North frowned a little, “It wasn’t _that_ bad, was it?”

 

“No,” Aster leaned over the counter and grabbed one of the bottles of water the Russian man had brought out, “ya know how he is, North, hardheaded as hell and denial so bad I couldn’t even begin to draw a colorful comparison to it. You were right though, about him needing a nudge.”

 

North chuckled at this, “Jack forgets we know him so well sometimes. He can be easy to read given enough time. I had my suspicions when I kept finding him on roof every morning. But he seems better now. Less spacy.”

 

Aster cracked open the bottle of water and took a drink, “Yeah, it seems like once I told him how he was hurting himself with this that he accepted it pretty quickly. Quicker than I thought he would. I was expecting this to go on for at least another week or so.”

 

North hummed at this. The conversation lulled and that was when Aster was able to hear a muffled noise. It was kind of annoying and North seemed to ignore it, “Uh, North?” he asked gaining the man’s attention as he sat down on the chair behind the counter, “what is that?”

 

The older man cocked a white bushy eyebrow before realizing what Aster was talking about, “Oh,” he smiled, “I find phone in my office. I figured one of you sat it in there, but I brought it out here in case someone came looking for it.”

 

Still the phone kept ringing and North made no attempt to answer. Aster rolled his eyes and walked around the counter and opened the draw to search for the device, but it stopped ringing by the time he found it. “What’s with that look,” he looked up and saw Jack standing in front of the counter.

 

The Australian sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, “North found a phone and it was ringing, but he wasn’t answering it,” he explained.

 

North shrugged, “Not my phone to answer.”

 

“It could have been the owner trying to find it,” Aster said unlocking the screen, “well, whosever it is, they’ve missed 16 calls from Astrid.”

 

Jack’s eyes widened, “Let me see that!” He nearly leaped over the counter to snatch the device out of Bunny’s hand, “This is Hiccup’s phone! His phone has been here the whole time.”

 

Aster crossed his arms and chortled, “Well, you wanted a good reason to see him, didn’t ya?” Jack glared over at him, sliding off the counter he had been practically laying on, “Well, go take it to him.”

 

North gave a booming laugh, “Yes, Jack, go see him. Seems you are not the only one thinking about him,” he teased.

 

Jack grimaced at the both of them, “I was going to go out with Bunny an—“

 

“Go, Jack,” Bunny said firmly, “Me and Sandy will still have fun without you. Besides, it’s probably best you are not around alcohol.”

 

Jack groaned, “Why won’t you guys let that go? That was like a year ago!”

 

North chuckled at his son’s misfortune, “Everyone has that one story their family won’t let them live down, this is yours. Is funny story. Almost as funny as when Aster got you in the bathroom with water gun. Now go! Go see Hiccup. I will take Aster to Sandy’s.”

 

Jack glanced back over at Aster who nudged his head to the door and he smiled, “Thanks, guys.” And with that he was out the door, running to his car as if someone was about to steal it. He didn’t hear Aster and his father laugh at how quick he was to jump to the chance of seeing Hiccup. North stood from his seat and began to finish filling the cooler, “So, what do you make of this Hiccup,” he asked over his shoulder.

 

Aster shrugged and stole North’s chair, leaning back casually and crossed his arms, “I have only met him twice and it wasn’t for very long…”

 

North turned and raised an eyebrow, “But…?”

 

The salt and pepper haired man smiled, “He seems like a good kid, a bit shy, but he was polite every time I spoke to him, so I guess he isn’t too bad. At least he left a good first and second impression.”

 

North hummed and closed the cooler and joined Aster, leaning against the counter. Aster saw the look on North’s face and the forlorn expression stained on it, “Alright, North, spill the beans. What is it?”

 

North shook his head, “I know he has dated before, but I have never seen him like _this_.”

 

Aster scoffed, “So? Is it because it’s a guy?”

 

North shook his head and ran his fingers through his beard mindlessly, “Not at all, I love him no matter what, but I know we do not live in perfect world, Aster. Not everyone is as accepting to this as we are. Jack and his Hiccup will not always have it easy. There are people out there that can do cruel things to people like them.”

 

Aster looked at his lap. He knew what North was worried about and completely understood why. North was Jack’s father, adopted or not, and he cared about the safety of his son. Aster knew North lost a daughter and his wife and he wouldn’t be able to handle it if he lost Jack too, especially to someone’s prejudice. It was always a worry North had when it came to Jack, something happening that caused him to lose his son. The boy had already gone through some pretty traumatic things as it is, losing him to a hate crime would just be… North didn’t even want to think about it.

 

Letting out a sigh, Aster looked over at North, “What you’re feeling is called ‘being a parent’. It is natural to worry about your kid, but Jack is stronger than he looks. Keep in mind that it’s not always like that. Even if he does end up with the boy, they could still end up living a completely normal life. The world isn’t safe for anyone, really. We just have to be there for them when we can and help him prepare for it,” he said, just above a whisper.

 

The white haired man shook his head, “Well, at least I get to see Jack fall in love for the first time,” he said with a bit more cheer in his voice.

 

Aster laughed, “There ya go. That’s the spirit. Besides, they may not even end up together, but if they do, all we can do is be there for them. Be happy for him, North. It’s not everyday someone as boneheaded as your son comes to terms with something like this and it’s not every day a father gets to watch their child fall in love without missing it.”

 

* * *

 

 

Jack made it to his car in record speed. He threw on his seatbelt and pulled out of his parking spot and raced out of the lot. His mind was going a mile a minute and he couldn’t even pin his thoughts down with words. All he knew was he was going to see Hiccup. He didn’t even realize how excited he was at first. When had that happened? His heart was hammering against his sternum and his palms were a bit sweaty as he gripped tighter onto the steering wheel.

 

He wanted to jerk the traffic light off of the wire it hung from and throw it somewhere. Why did they even need traffic lights? Why was it taking so long? Jack let out a frustrated groan and hit his head against the wheel, “Fucking come on already!”

 

He lifted back up and saw that the light was green, but the cars weren’t moving as fast as he’d like them too. He was antsy and getting a bit irritated at himself for being so. Hiccup was still going to be there.

 

Just as Jack turned a corner the phone that sat in the passenger seat started to ring. He figured that it must have been a newer phone because of the impressive battery life. It had been almost two days and it still had some life left. He reached over and grabbed the device and saw that it was Astrid calling again.

 

He hit the answer button but before he could even say ‘hello’ he got, “Hiccup?! Where the hell have you been and why the _fuck_ haven’t you been answering your phone?! Oh, gods, you had me worried about you!”

 

Jack stared blankly at the phone for a moment before returning it to his ear, which he had pulled it away due to the fact he thought Astrid voice was going to knock out his eardrum, “Um, hey, Astrid right?”

 

“You’re not Hiccup. Who the hell is this and why do you have my friend’s phone,” she screamed into the phone.

 

Jack gave a wry chuckle, “My name’s Jack, I’m Hiccup’s trainer, he had left his phone at the gym the other night and we just found it. I’m actually taking it to him now,” he explained, flinching a little expecting her to scream again, but it never came.

 

She instead let out a huge sigh, “Thank gods,” she whispered before changing her tone, “so you’re Jack, huh?”

 

“That would be me. And you are Astrid, the friend who wanted my picture. Like what you saw?” He answered with a bit of a sultry tone before he chuckled, sometimes Jack couldn’t help himself, he was a natural flirt and would just do it even when he’s not meaning to.

 

Astrid cleared her throat rather loudly as if she were embarrassed, “Yeah…” she said before quickly adding, “I mean, yeah to me being the one who wanted the picture,” earning another snicker from Jack, “So, anyways, Hiccup’s still alive and well?”

 

Jack fell silent. Should he tell her what happened? I mean, she was Hiccup’s best friend and he would probably tell her anyways. She sounded very concerned for his well-being. Maybe it wasn’t his place even though Hiccup came to him. He didn’t know the details of what happened and he didn’t want to worry her more, but maybe she would be able to help their friend out more than he could.

 

“Jack? You there?”

 

He cleared his throat, “Uh, yeah… I’m here. Listen, I probably shouldn’t be the one to tell you this, but something happened to Hiccup the other night,” he spoke softly, worry clearly in his voice, “give me a second and I’ll explain.”

 

Jack placed the phone down in the seat and turned into the parking lot of a department store. He needed a bit more time. He was pretty close to Hiccup’s apartment complex and didn’t really want to have a chance of Hiccup walking past him and seeing him on his phone, also he didn’t want to be pulled over for being on the phone while driving. After engaging the breaks he picked the phone back up, “You there,” he asked.

 

“Yeah, now what do you mean something happened? What happened? Was it Dagur?”

 

“What? _Daggers_?”

 

“Nothing, go ahead.”

 

He could tell she was worried and she probably had good reason to be. He wanted to be there for him, but he knew she would probably make things better for Hiccup since she was closer to him or at least easier for him, but why was she talking about daggers? Oh well, not important. He sighed, “Anyways, the other night I think,” he paused and corrected himself, “ _I know_ something happened to him. He showed up at the gym and he wasn’t himself. He was a little banged up and freaking out.”

 

Astrid was quiet for a moment, “Banged up and freaking out,” she echoed.

 

Jack hummed in affirmation, “Yeah.”

 

“What happened to him exactly?” At the moment Astrid sounded like she was near panic, but was trying to cover it up. It was understandable. She called thinking she was going to talk to her friend, but instead got a stranger and said stranger is telling her something had happened.

 

“I… I’m not sure. I asked him and he wouldn’t tell me,” he answered, “Truthfully, the only thing I could think of would be that he was at the wrong place at the wrong time and either someone tried robbing him or just beat him up.”

 

Astrid was quiet for a moment, Jack assuming she was mulling over what he had just told her. He was curious as to what maybe going through her mind, but didn’t ask.

 

“Anyways, Astrid I was wondering if maybe there was a way that maybe you could come here and spend some time with him. Maybe a familiar face would do him some good,” he said, leaning back in his seat, “He wasn’t hurt incredibly bad physically, but mentally… well, that may be a different story. Whatever it was had to definitely be jarring.”

 

“Well, I’d love to come there, but it’d have to wait. Berk is quite a ways, six to seven hours depending on traffic,” she explained, “I was thinking about coming there for his birthday and I could take him out.”

 

Jack perked up some, “I didn’t know it was that far. When is his birthday?”

 

“It’s in three weeks. It’s the day before Halloween.”

 

This got Jack thinking, “Oh yeah… he did tell me that now that I think about it. Hey, how’d you like to surprise him? I’m sure we could come up with something to lift his spirits.”

 

“What exactly do you have in mind?”

 

“No idea, but we have three weeks to come up with something,” he said, feeling a little giddy, “We could give him the best birthday ever!”

 

The blonde giggled, “Alright. Well, I gotta get to work. Thank you for taking care of him. I would have probably been on the road heading to Burgess if I didn’t think he was in good hands. Now give me your number so we can plan something and you better not come up with anything lame.”

 

“You want my number? My, oh, my, aren’t we forward,” he laughed.

 

Astrid rolled her eyes and groaned, “Don’t flatter yourself too much,”

 

“Ouch! Lift me up only to tear me down. I am indeed wounded,” he joked before telling her his number.

 

“Thank you, Jack. Make sure he is ok for me. I worry a lot about him. As for seeing a familiar face, he has you there. He may not know you as well as me, but trust me, he’d be just as happy seeing you as he would me, even if he doesn’t always act like it.” This made Jack smile and could feel a tightening in his chest. Hiccup was right when he told Jack he’d like Astrid. She seemed like someone who could keep Hiccup grounded and wouldn’t take any shit from him.

 

“I’m not sure I would take it that far,” he sounded modestly.

 

“I would,” she scoffed, “ _he_ was the one who said he was saying how much he wanted to be friends with you, Mr. Cool Trainer. Now, I seriously have to go now. I am running late for work. Take care of Hiccup for me!”

 

“I will. Nothing to worry about here. I’ll tell him to call you in a bit.”

 

When Astrid hung up the phone she couldn’t help but feel worried. Something had happened to Hiccup and she didn’t know what it was. She so desperately wanted to see him, check up on him, but she couldn’t. There was quite a distance between them. She was actually grateful that Jack was there with him. If they weren’t friends—budding friends anyways—than she would have already stolen her mom’s car keys and been on the road before Jack explained what happened.

 

She didn’t know Jack but his heart seemed to be in the right place and he seemed to be just as worried about Hiccup as she was and Hiccup not telling Jack what had happened only made her more concerned. She knew her friend was stubborn, hell they all were. They were Vikings, stubbornness issues were a genetic trait. However, under normal circumstances the victim would normally give an idea of the crime committed against them and not leave everyone in the dark—so what really happened?

 

She exhaled a deep breath and slipped her shoes on before leaning down to pet Stormfly who sat beside her, tail happily smacking against the hardwood floor. Astrid came back to her full height when she heard Ruffnut honking and made her way outside, yelling a ‘bye mom, going to work, love you’ over her shoulder. As frustrating as it was, there wasn’t much she could do at the moment. She was a little over six hours away and Hiccup didn’t have his phone on him.

 

_‘Guess I’ll call him tonight and find out what the hell is going on…” she thought._

 

* * *

 

 

Hiccup stood on his balcony wrapped in a blanket and stared at the sky that was a mixture of orange and pink hues. It was sights like this that made him miss Berk. He would sit at the docks and watch the sun disappear, slowly dipping below the horizon. The way the lights would reflect off the water and you could smell the salt in the air as the moon and stars became more visible in the darkening sky. Before Valka got too sick to leave the house, she would join him at the end of one of the piers while waiting for his father to get off work.

 

She would tell him stories she made up or speak of legends and folklore and no matter how old he got, he always listened. His mother was a fantastic story teller. She knew how to stretch the truth just enough to make something as simple as a trip to the grocery store into an epic journey. She would give her stories vocal wings and let them carry you off into different realms of possibilities.

 

Hiccup wished he could do the things she could. He wanted her amazing abilities in storytelling or her incredible singing voice. He wanted her appetite for life and adventure. But mostly he wanted her. He just wanted her near. He wanted to make her proud and at the moment he couldn’t feel farther from that. He knew his mother would always love him, but after everything that’s happened, he highly doubted he’d make her proud.

 

One of the biggest regrets he has about leaving Berk was that he could no longer visit his mother. After she died he would sit in the cemetery and talk to her about his day like he had when she was alive. He would talk to her about his father, school, and Toothless. He wished his mother could have met Toothless. He knew she would have loved him like she did most animals. He only figured as much since she worked in a vet’s office as an assistant. He would do this almost every day for hours on end and once they watched the sunset Hiccup would go home.

 

It got more difficult to come see her once Dagur was in the picture. He never wanted Dagur to go with him and he didn’t want to talk to his mom about the things that were happening between them. After a while he would just sit at her grave and tell her how sorry he was, even though he wouldn’t tell her what he was sorry about.

 

Hiccup let out a sigh and shook these thoughts out of his mind. He felt bad enough about what had happened and it was time to move on. He never had a problem moving on after a night like the one he had with Hans. He’d go home, take a shower, and wake up the next morning continuing on with his life as if nothing happened. It was easier than it was now. In those days he didn’t care what people did to him. He let anyone do anything without a second thought, but after waking up from that it seemed far more difficult to face the day.

 

Even though he finally got up and showered he still felt like he had been rolling around in mud. He stood under the hot spray for a good 45 minutes before even bothering to wash himself. He washed his hair about four times and brushed his teeth seven. Afterwards he changed the bandages Jack had placed on his hands and face. The bruise on his cheek had darkened more into a greyish purple and the cut had begun to scab over which he was thankful for since it pretty much bled the whole day yesterday from where it was opening back up when he made any kind of facial expression.

 

He wanted to try and forget what happened with Hans. It was a simple mistake that anybody could have made. At least that’s what he was telling himself. He was glad he didn’t take Hans up on his offer when he asked him if he wanted anything to drink. That bastard probably would have drugged him. Anyways, enough about Hans.

 

The skin on Hiccup’s palms would still burn when the bandages would rub against it. He had been dealing with that all day. Toothless seemed to know something was amiss because he was keeping a careful eye on his human. Even now as Hiccup stood on his balcony, Toothless was staring at him through the glass door. He kept jumping into Hiccup’s lap and snaking around his legs whenever he stood. Hiccup had to hand it to the little furry beast, he knew how to make him feel better.

 

Hiccup pulled the glass sliding door open and entered his apartment, shutting and locking the door behind him, and made his way to the kitchen. He poured Toothless some food into his metal dish and watched as the cat curiously eyed him with those toxic eyes while he ate. He watched his human as if he were to look away for a second he would simply vanish. The cinnamon haired teen leaned down and stroked a bandaged hand down the cat’s soft fur, earning a small purr-meow noise from him, “Thank you, bud,” he said before walking back to his room.

 

It had been nearly two days and Hiccup figured he’d better go to the store and get himself another phone, or at least a temp phone, until he could get a replacement ordered. He needed to call Astrid and maybe his father to let them know he was still breathing and had misplaced his phone.

 

He figured he couldn’t continue to hold up in his apartment, eventually he would have to leave anyways. He couldn’t allow this one mishap scare him from ever trying to move forward again. He pulled out a baggy, long sleeved green shirt and a pair of jeans and quickly got dressed. He wasn’t sure how long the store would be open and he wasn’t feeling too good about going out at night.

 

He slipped his shoes on and walked back into the living room, seeing Toothless stretched out on the couch, full and purring. Hiccup smiled at his furry friend and grabbed his keys and wallet off the counter. He and Toothless both nearly jumped a foot in the air when there was a sudden pounding on his front door. Hiccup wasn’t sure if he wanted to answer it or not. He looked down to see Toothless circle his legs before slinking over to the door and meowed.

 

Hiccup sighed and opened the door to see Jack standing there, “Jack?”

 

“Hey,” he gave a half smile.

 

Hiccup could still feel his heart jumping around inside his chest, but forced himself to calm down some. He opened the door wider and gestured for him to come in, closing the door behind him, “What brings you here?”

 

“Oh!” Jack reached into his hoodie pocket and pulled out Hiccup’s cell phone, “North found your phone in his office,” he explained handing it over.

 

“Thanks. You saved me a trip to the store,” he said.

 

Jack leaned down to pet Toothless who was craving attention from him and let him know by nudging his calves. He nipped at Jack’s fingers and pressed his face into his palm, lovingly. Hiccup scoffed, “He has really taken a shine to you. It normally takes him a while.”

 

Jack smiled, flashing his pearly whites, “Maybe he is an excellent judge of character and knows an awesome person when he sees them.”

 

Hiccup rolled his eyes and sat his phone on the counter, “Someone thinks highly of themselves.”

 

“Just calling it like I see it,” he said confidently, stroking the cat’s back, “Isn’t that right buddy?”

 

“Need to get your eyes checked,” he murmured, getting a pout from Jack.

 

“Oh, Astrid said she’d call you later because she had to go to work.”

 

“You talked to Astrid?”

 

Jack came to his full height and stretched, “Well, she called while I was on my way over and you already had like 16 missed calls from her already, so I answered it. I hope you don’t mind.”

 

The cinnamon haired teen shook his head and shrugged, “Nah, I don’t mind. I figured she would have been worried since she hadn’t heard from me since the day before we went out.”

 

Jack nodded and there was an awkward lull between them. He took this time to look more carefully at Hiccup’s face. He could see the darkened bruise showing from under the freshly changed bandage. He was curious as to how his friend had been and was going over different ways to ask him while in the car, but now that he is there it is much harder than he thought to bring it up.

 

He exhaled deeply and chewed on his lip, leaning against the wall, “So,” he finally said after what felt like years, “how, um, how have you been?”

 

Hiccup tensed a bit. He knew the question was coming as much as he prayed it wouldn’t, “I got out of bed today, so I have that going for me.”

 

Jack gave a sad smile. He wanted to hug him, but didn’t. He fought the urge as hard as it was. He knew that things were getting awkward but he didn’t want to leave him just yet. “Um, you hungry?”

 

Hiccup shrugged, “I haven’t really had much of an appetite lately.”

 

“Well, as your trainer, I must insist that you eat three meals a day,” he gestured to him, “you know, to maintain proper health.”

 

Hiccup shook his head, “I don’t know, Jack, I just…” he trailed off.

 

“Ever had a gyro?”

 

“A what,” he asked, cocking an eyebrow.

 

“A gyro. It’s Greek.”

 

“Um, no. I don’t even know what that is.”

 

Jack gave an over dramatic gasp and tsked, “Shame, you don’t know what you are missing. Come on, I know the best gyro place! It’s actually by the park we were at the other night.” Hiccup stared at him for a moment, unsure of what to say. He didn’t really want to leave the apartment, except to get his phone and he didn’t even want to do that. Even though he knew things were a bit uneasy around Jack, if he was willing to let it go for a while, he wouldn’t mind spending some time with him.

 

Jack moved closer to him and jutted his lower lip out in a fake pout and proceeded to give puppy eyes at him, “Unless, you know, you want me to go all by myself—alone—and sit in my car and eat awesome food— _alone._ ”

 

Hiccup shook his head and laughed, “Come on you dork.”

 

Jack did a fist pump, “Alright! I promise you won’t regret it.”

 

However when Hiccup reached for the door Jack stopped him. He looked at his friend curiously as he stripped off his blue hoodie and handed it to him with a smile, “It’s cold out.”

 

Hiccup took the offered garment, “You know Berk has some of the worst winters. I can handle a bit of cold. Besides, what about you?”

 

Jack gave him a cryptic look, “Well, I have on a thermal plus another shirt on top of it. Besides, I actually love the cold. You, on the other hand, do not have a jacket on and a thin shirt. Now you better put that on,” he said the last part jokingly.

 

Hiccup was about to argue with him and tell him he could change into something warmer to make him happy, but he realized that Jack must have had a reason behind giving it to him. Maybe it was his way of offering a truce.

 

“Yes, father.” And with a smile and a roll of the eyes, Hiccup pulled the large hoodie over his head. He was a bit distraught to see how it actually looked on him. On Jack it looked maybe a size too big, but it nearly swallowed him. The sleeves were too long and the hem was about two inches from his knees. Was Jack really that much taller than him? Just looking at him it was clear he was at least 5’11 maybe six feet.

 

He pulled the sleeves up some and pursed his lips, “I didn’t think I was going to drown in it.”

 

Jack rolled his eyes, “You look fine. Now come on, let’s go.”

 

* * *

 

 

They made it to the restaurant and Jack ordered them their sandwiches, fries, and a drink. He shushed Hiccup when he started complaining about Jack paying for his food and kept telling him he’d pay because it was his idea to bring him there and it wasn’t like it was incredibly expensive. Hiccup thanked him but not before telling him, again, that he didn’t have to do that.

 

After pulling away with their food in hand, Jack drove a few blocks to the park they had been at a few nights ago. It was dark by the time they got there, but Hiccup was thankful that no one was around. He didn’t care much for seeing people.

 

It didn’t take long after the first bite of his food that Hiccup dove into his sandwich. His face was covered in sauce and he was literally moaning into it. Jack sat and watched in awe, chewing slowly, with a goofy grin on his face. He didn’t think it was possible for Hiccup to eat like that. Sure he saw him eat when they were at Sandy’s restaurant, but he definitely was eating way slower than this.

 

Jack couldn’t help snicker in amusement, “Are you eating that thing or are you _eating_ that thing?”

 

Hiccup’s face flushed a deep crimson and he averted his eyes, “Shut up,” he mumbled, “I haven’t really eaten a lot lately.”

 

Jack chuckled and pats his friend on the shoulder, “No worries. I’ve just never heard someone moan so much into a gyro before. I take it that you like it though, right?”

 

Hiccup nodded and grabbed a napkin and wiped off his face. They finished eating, making small talk and what not. By the time they finished Hiccup wanted to take a mini coma. He didn’t realize how hungry he was until he had started eating and now he felt like he was seven months pregnant.

 

He thanked Jack once more and Jack scolded him for thanking him so much. He couldn’t help, but smile. He hadn’t smiled a real smile in what felt like an eternity and Jack made it so easy for him to do so.

 

“You wanna go walk around? Might help your stomach settle some,” the bi-color haired man offered. Hiccup nodded as he finished the last gulp of his soda and proceeded to gather their trash into the bag from once it came and got out of the car to throw it away in a nearby bin. Jack joined him after locking up his car and they set down the darkened path. There was a comfortable silence between them as they walked, feet crunching down on frostbitten leaves that littered the path.

 

The weather was indeed cold for early October, but still tolerable. Their breath muddled together as they exhaled soft clouds that gingerly disappeared. Hiccup could feel the gentle breeze nip at his face, as could Jack, but neither said anything about it.

 

Hiccup could feel all of his anxieties that had been crushing him the past couple of days slowly dwindling away. He was still upset, no doubt, but at the moment he felt like he could handle it better, like everything wasn’t so bad after all and it was because Jack was there. Jack had this way about him that could melt away all his petty fears and insecurities and he didn’t know how he did it.

 

Hiccup had accepted now that he did have feelings for Jack, in more ways than one, but he didn’t want to risk telling him out of fear of losing him. He didn’t think Jack was the type to turn someone away because of them being gay, but he wasn’t so sure about the possible awkwardness (adding to the existing awkwardness) of finding out and the feelings aren’t returned. He didn’t know if he was bisexual or whatever, but he did know that he had at least some interest in women since he learned that Heather was his ex-girlfriend.

 

Even if Jack had interest in men it didn’t mean that he had an interest in him. He wanted to ask him and honestly didn’t know what was stopping him from doing so. Maybe because of the possible ‘no’ and the follow up of ‘are you?’

 

Hiccup could feel his hands starting to shake a little. He was frustrated and fidgeting and kept clenching and unclenching his fists and tugging at oversized sleeves. Besides, even if the gods took mercy on him and he somehow managed to get Jack to be with him, he could never be completely honest with him. There were things about himself that Hiccup would rather be skinned alive and thrown into a vat of salt and lemon juice before Jack found out. What relationship could he possibly hope to have with him? Jack would never want to be with someone like him. He could barely stand looking at his own reflection at times, how could Jack bare to be in the same room with him if he knew the truth?

 

The painful thoughts that Hiccup had started to believe were vanishing had returned in a new form, but still filled him with what he believed to be self-righteous indignation. His knuckles were turning white under his bandages from how hard he had started clinching his fists and he somehow managed to ignore the burning that sprouted in his palms from where his fingernails had been digging in. However, that all stopped when a pale hand wrapped around his clinched one. Hiccup’s head snapped to the side where he looked down and saw Jack’s hand gently holding onto his. His mossy green eyes followed the arm to see Jack looking at him with concerned eyes.

 

“Hey, Hic, you okay?” His voice was soft and worried which didn’t make him feel any better. He had made Jack worry enough, maybe a little too much. He looked back down at the hand over his own and could feel his face heat up some, “Is this… okay,” he asked cautiously, examining Hiccup’s face for any displeasure.

 

Hiccup stared at their hands for a moment almost trying to see if he was indeed daydreaming. How could someone with so much caring and compassion exist? He was right there and all Hiccup could think of was ways to push him away because of his own self-loathing. He was stopping himself and he knew it. He didn’t want this for himself, his mother, Astrid, even Toothiana didn’t or wouldn’t want this for him. Why was it so hard to accept that he could actually be happy, even if it wasn’t in a romantic way, but platonic as well? It wasn’t.

 

Hiccup looked back into Jack’s bi-colored eyes and smiled, “This is fine,” he replied, lacing their fingers together, earning a soft squeeze from Jack, and caused Hiccup’s heart to leap.

 

Never in his years had he ever felt like this. He and Dagur never did this sort of thing. It was always sex and pain and hurting. Never had he felt like his feelings were returned in any way, but with Jack it did and so much more. He wasn’t sure how Jack felt but it had to be something. He was always so nice to him and never asked for anything in return.

 

The two continued to walk in silence down the path, fingers laced and swinging slightly. Hiccup wanted to say and ask so many things, but didn’t really know where to begin. He finally turned to his friend and smiled, “You know,” he cleared his throat, “we never finished our game of 20 Questions.”

 

Jack glanced over to him, giving Hiccup’s hand a slight squeeze, not enough to hurt him, but enough for him to feel it through his bandaged hand. He nodded, “Okay, you go first.”

 

Hiccup thought for a moment. He should have thought about what to ask before suggesting this. He tapped his chin in thought before turning back with a smile, “Well, I know you like to play pranks, but what is the most memorable one ever played on you?”

 

Jack laughed, “It’s funny you ask that, North actually mentioned it earlier today,” Hiccup smile and gestured for him to continue, “Well, this one time I knew Aster was coming over to talk to North—I believe at the time he was helping Aster look for a house. Anyways I hid behind the bushes and when he came to the door I jumped out and sprayed him with a water gun. I got him good too, I might add. Well later that night, it was close to midnight, I had fallen asleep and I got up to go to the bathroom and while I was in there—defenseless and not fully awake—Aster burst in with a water gun in each hand and started spraying me,” at the moment Hiccup was laughing so hard that his face was flushing and his side was starting to hurt. Once he calmed down Jack continued, “Yeah, he got me good, but that’s not even the worst part! He had slammed the door on me and while I was getting my pants back up he sprayed cooking spray on the floor—hardwood, mind you—and hid. When I came running out of the bathroom to go after him I slid and busted my ass.”

 

Hiccup doubled over in laughter, letting go of Jack’s hand in the process and grabbed at his sore belly. He could see Jack trying to chase after the older man while pulling his pants up and suddenly fall as if it happened right in front of him. He finally calmed down again and wiped away stray tears that had fallen in the process of laughing. Jack couldn’t help but chortle as well. Hiccup’s laugh was infectious and probably one of the cutest things he had ever heard. He shook those thoughts from his mind and continued, “You are a butthead for laughing,” he said with faux anger before it disappeared into a smile, “Well, what made it better was as I lied on the ground, soaked and with a sore ass, Aster came out laughing at me and ended up slipping and falling himself. So, I guess that made it better.”

 

Hiccup shook his head, still giggling a bit, “Well, that would indeed be memorable.”

 

“Yeah, I was amazed North wasn’t mad at us for nearly ruining his floors, but when he saw us he just stood there and laughed at us,” he said with a small laugh, “anyways, my turn. Righty or lefty?”

 

“Lefty. You?”

 

“Righty,” Jack replied, wigging the fingers on his right hand, “First kiss?”

 

Hiccup smiled, “Astrid in second grade. I kissed her one night while we were at her house after the twins, Ruffnut and Tuffnut decided we were doing to play Truth or Dare.”

 

“Ruffnut and Tuffnut? You people and your weird names.”

 

Hiccup nodded, “Their real names are Taren and Raquelle, but because we all go by nicknames—except Astrid—they go by Ruffnut and Tuffnut, or just Ruff and Tuff. Ruff was actually there when I sent Astrid your picture and she apparently fell in love with you.”

 

Jack chuckled, “But Hiccup, I only have eyes for you, baby,” he half-joked.

 

Hiccup laughed as well and began fanning himself, “Oh, Mr. Overland-Frost, I do believe you have me weak in the knees.”

 

They continued to ask each other questions as they made their way down the pathway, every so often bumping shoulders with one another. As they reached the pond, Hiccup made a daring move and laced his hand back together with Jack’s, who held his back, occasionally giving him a gentle squeeze. They didn’t talk about it or what it meant, they just let it happen. For all Hiccup knew Jack could have thought he was just wanting comfort and contact with another person, which wasn’t that much of a stretch, but it wasn’t just anyone’s contact he wanted, just Jack’s.

 

Hiccup and Jack learned a lot about each other. Hiccup learned that Jack’s last name was ‘Overland-Frost’ (his mother’s maiden name was Frost) and she had apparently told his father she’d refuse to marry him if she couldn’t keep her last name and they came up with a compromise and also that Jack didn’t have a middle name. When Hiccup asked him why that was all he replied was, “Isn’t Jackson Overland-Frost enough?”

 

Jack, in turn, learned a lot about Hiccup as well. He learned more about where he was from and how his mom was apparently one of the worst cooks and every year on his birthday he would wake up to the smell of burnt eggs and bacon from where she attempted to make him breakfast. He never turned the meal down though because he didn’t want to hurt her feelings and would eat it anyways. Soon they started talking about how Hiccup’s classes were going and how he was liking Burgess. Hiccup admitted he enjoyed his own space and the new scenery.

 

He told Jack about how he hated living in a small town where everyone knew everything. It was like the people knew things about you before you knew things about you. Burgess wasn’t a huge city, but it was definitely bigger than Berk and the more people that surrounded you the more privacy you get because everyone is too engulfed in their problems to worry about yours as ironic as that may sound.

 

Eventually they made their way back to Hiccup’s apartment and Jack walked him to the door, their hands finally parting after all that time, “Thank you, Jack. I really needed a day out.”

 

Jack rolled his bi-colored eyes, “Hiccup, I swear I am going to sock you if you keep thanking me. I already told you that you were welcome, stop being so humble.”

 

“You want me to not thank you?”

 

“No,” he sighed, “but it makes me feel like you think this is an act of charity and that’s not it. I am doing it because I _want_ to.”

 

Hiccup cocked an eyebrow, “Why?”

 

Jack was taken aback. He didn’t know exactly how to answer that. Well, that’s a lie, he did. He knew exactly why—it was because he liked Hiccup and he wanted to be around him as much as possible and he didn’t like it when he was upset or sad. He averted his gaze, that wall over there suddenly became very interesting. He wasn’t ready to let Hiccup know he liked him, hell, he just accepted it himself _today_.

 

He cleared his throat and peaked back over to his friend, his face suddenly feeling a lot warmer, “I, um, I just wanted to. I don’t like seeing you sad and we are friends, it’s what friends do, right?”

 

Hiccup seemed to accept his answer or at least decided not to question it further. The conversation lulled for a few moments before Jack finally spoke up again, “Well, I had fun today, but I suppose I’ll let you get inside. I’ll see you later,” he said with a sad smile and turned to walk away, but was stopped when he felt Hiccup’s skinny arms wrap around his center and his forehead press into the spot in between his shoulder blades.

 

Jack froze and looked down at the freckled hands that were resting on his belly, he didn’t say anything at first, just rested his hands on top of Hiccup’s. They stayed like that for a moment before Hiccup finally pulled away and Jack turned to meet his gaze, “I’m sorry,” he said, just above a whisper, “I just really wasn’t ready to see you go yet.”

 

Jack was slightly stunned at what had just happened. He knew Hiccup had seemed to be craving contact today but he wasn’t sure what it had meant. He wanted it to mean a little something more than friendship but he wasn’t going to press his luck and ask. Instead he smiled and placed his hand on his shoulder, “Got any good movies?”

 

They both entered the apartment and unsurprisingly walked into a mess. Toothless must have once again grown bored while his human was out and decided to start knocking his homework and other papers off the counter. Hiccup groaned and begrudgingly picked them up. Jack found the naughty feline sitting on the back of the couch and sat down, allowing the cat to hop into his lap. He kicked off his shoes and stroked Toothless while Hiccup went to change, telling Jack where the movies were and to pick one.

 

He shooed Toothless out of his lap before going over to the large movie case that was in the corner of the room and began looking through them. It didn’t surprise him at all to find a collection of Sci-Fi and Fantasy movies (Eragon, Avatar, Lord of the Rings, Labyrinth, and The Dark Crystal to name a few), but what did surprise him was his apparent love for Disney films (The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Aladdin, and so on). Quite an impressive collection, he’d admit. There were also some independent films, a few romantic comedies and horror films too, some he had never heard of. After a while Hiccup returned dressed in his pajamas—a pair of black sweats and an oversized green shirt with a dragon on it—he looked incredibly adorable in Jack’s opinion.

 

“You must have a thing for dragons,” Jack teased.

 

Hiccup narrowed his eyes, “Shut up,” he sat Jack’s hoodie on the back of the couch and joined him at the cabinet, “Find anything yet?”

 

Jack shrugged and held up a DVD case, “I was looking at this one. It sounds interesting. Is it any good?” Hiccup took the offered case and saw that Jack had picked the movie _Triangle_.

 

Hiccup nodded, “Yeah, it’s about this women who goes out on a boat with her friends and after they are caught in a storm and pulled out further to sea, they find this seemingly abandoned ship and a bunch of crazy shit starts happening.”

 

Jack beamed his pearly whites, “ _Triangle_ it is then!”

 

Jack jumped back onto the couch while Hiccup popped the movie in and grabbed a large blanket for them. He got them some drinks and shut off the lights, finally joining his friend on the couch, pulling the blanket over them both. Hiccup sat in the middle of the couch and Jack sat, legs almost to his chest, on the right side with his back to the arm. It wasn’t even ten minutes into the movie that Jack wiggled his toes under Hiccup’s butt causing him to jump a little before scooching away some.

 

Jack laughed, “You’re warm and my feet are cold,” he stated simply.

 

Hiccup rolled his eyes, “We have a blanket, you dork.” He tugged at the blanket that rested over them.

 

“Your butt is warmer,” he piped while wiggling his toes under Hiccup’s butt again, this time he didn’t move.

 

The movie went on and Jack was surprisingly quiet throughout it so far. Hiccup would have sworn Jack was the type to not shut up during a movie, but he sat there and stared at the screen before them, only occasionally would Hiccup catch those beautiful bi-colored eyes glancing over at him and even then their gaze didn’t hold for long before turning back to the TV. Toothless ended up joining them and snuggled into Hiccup’s lap, where he was given gentle strokes down the length of his body.

 

What Hiccup didn’t know was Jack was barely devoting any of his attention to the movie. He watched bits and pieces and was getting the gist of the story, but at the same time he was a bit lost. In fact if Hiccup were to question him about the plot he would have failed miserably at trying to explain what had happened thus far. All he knew was there was some chick and her buddies that got caught in a storm while on a boat and then said boat was—was it flipped or something?—anyways, now they are on this seemingly abandoned ship and there was a someone chasing and shooting at them.

 

That was pretty much all he had gathered before his mind started to wander. It wasn’t like he wasn’t happy that Hiccup wanted him to stay, but he couldn’t help but think about how their day—well evening—had gone. Hiccup had been acting a bit strange, but it was a no brainer why that was, however that wasn’t what was bothering Jack. What bothered Jack about this was, despite his friend being a bit clingy (which he didn’t mind) and a little nervous, was the fact that he seemed a bit too calm overall. Jack was no fool and he knew something had happened to his friend, but even still it was almost unsettling how calm he was acting. It was a gut feeling he just couldn’t shake. Oh god he was starting to sound like North.

 

He knew that just because something had happened didn’t mean that Hiccup couldn’t still feel joy and could no longer laugh, but something was a bit off. He was now acting like it had never happened or like he was no longer bothered by it. He didn’t even bother locking his front door when they came in, Jack was the one to do it, and he didn’t seem to have a problem with going out, even if he was with someone and not constantly looking over his shoulder like one would expect a person who had the victim of some kind of assault.

 

Jack figured he could also be looking too far into it and just examining it as how he would have probably reacted to such a thing. Jack wouldn’t lie to himself and say he wouldn’t be bothered after being beat up by, most likely (he figured), a random stranger. He knew he would try and fight whoever off, but he also knew that his faith in people, in general, would definitely be shaken. He probably wouldn’t want to be alone. He would most likely stay with Aster or North. He wouldn’t want to really go out and he knew he would be paranoid. Like who wouldn’t?

 

‘ _Stop thinking about it too much, Jack, maybe he is trying to forget and move on,_ ’ his mind echoed in his head, almost hushed as if Hiccup could hear it if he were too loud, ‘ _You are not the same person and people react differently to various situations_.’

 

Jack’s attention turned him back to Hiccup as he left him shifting his position, probably trying to get comfortable, and ended up resting sideways against Jack’s propped up legs, resting his forearm on his knees. The two-toned haired men gave a gentle smile at his friend, not minding the weight against his legs. He could see Hiccup’s eyes flick over to him for a moment as if seeing if he minded the new position and when he saw there was no bother, his turned back to the movie.

 

They watched in silence, Jack eventually leaning further into the couch’s cushioned arm. He had to admit that Hiccup did indeed own a very comfortable couch. He let the plot once again catch his interest even though at this point he had no idea what was going on. He figured he didn’t miss much time wise, but he did miss some key elements to the story. Oh well, any noise was better then what was going on inside his own head.

 

For a brief moment Toothless catches his eye as he hops from Hiccup’s slanted lap, probably from no longer being comfortable, and prances off somewhere into the darkened apartment. He turned back to the movie and watched in silence, trying to absorb the plot line. It seemed like hours had passed, but it was probably thirty minutes tops that the movie was over. He felt the need to stand and stretch the stiffness out of his legs, but when he turned to say something to Hiccup all he could see was the top of his head that was now resting on his propped arm.

 

Sometime during the deration on the movie his friend had fallen asleep. Maybe Jack had been wrong about Hiccup being too calm about all of this. When was the last time he had actually slept decently? Or slept at all? He did seem a bit lethargic (maybe a tad sluggish), among other things, when he first arrived, but he seemed to thrive fine while they were out. Maybe Jack was right when he told Astrid that Hiccup needed a familiar face around and maybe Astrid, too, was right to say _he was_ that familiar face Hiccup needed.

 

From his awkward view he could see his shoulders moving ever so slightly with each even breath he took. He was out and sleeping deeply. Maybe Jack could move him enough to allow him to lie down on the couch without waking him. What if he did wake him? Jack would feel terrible if he woke him and he hadn’t been sleeping these past few days.

 

He thought for a moment and figured the best way to do it would be to place his arms under Hiccup’s and hold him up while quickly sliding out and then ease him down as _slowly_ as he possibly could without—well, that won’t work now. Hiccup mumbled incoherent syllables as he shifted around and turned some to where his back was pressing more against Jack’s legs than his side. Well, it might work actually, but Jack, by this time had already made up his mind that he didn’t mind Hiccup laying on him. If he were being honest this was something he was hoping for. He didn’t want to leave after all. He was sure Hiccup wouldn’t mind him crashing for the night; he did ask him to stay after all and it was pretty late now that the movie was over at least that’s what Jack kept telling himself.

 

So instead of finding a way to get out from under his friend, he decided figure out a way to at least stretch out his legs. He pushed up some from the couch arm, careful not to jostle his friend around too much, and held onto him as he slowly moved his legs apart and lowered Hiccup back between them to where his head was now resting on his chest. Hiccup groaned and his bleary eyes opened half way and looked inquisitively at Jack, who sat frozen for a moment. He wanted to ask Hiccup if this was alright. He wanted to explain to him that he wasn’t trying to do anything funny and was just trying to get more comfortable since he wasn’t able to get up (not that he’d admit he didn’t really want to).

 

Jack gave a weak smile that was laced with a bit of guilt from waking him, but that soon washed away when Hiccup’s eyes closed and he flopped a noodle arm lazily over Jack’s abdomen, snuggling up into the crook of his neck. Jack let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding and began to relax his suddenly tensed shoulders. He stretched out his legs on either side of Hiccup, joints popping as he did so, and laid back against the couch arm, pulling the large blanket over them and casted his eyes to the darkened ceiling that reflected the blue hue that was cast from the TV’s auxiliary station after the DVD player turned off automatically after running through the main menu screen twice.

 

It was in that moment that Jack’s mind began to wander again as he laid awkwardly under Hiccup. For what seemed like ever he had been mulling over the fear he had of his friend rejecting him for having feelings for him that he never took the moment to think of what kind of relationship he could possibly have if he didn’t. What if Hiccup did like him back and they could have something and what would that be like? He had never had a girlfriend last longer than a few months so something long term was foreign to him. Would it be like this? Feeling safe and needed by each other?

 

Jack’s chest felt tight. He looked down at Hiccup, who was breathing soundlessly through his nose, his breath tickling Jack’s neck but not enough to be bothersome. He reached down and laced their fingers together pulling the limp arm up enough to place a gentle kiss on his exposed knuckles before resting their hands on his chest.

 

He could get used to this. He could.

 

He couldn’t form the words to describe how he was feeling at the moment but he knew the more time he spent like this the more he realized that he’s got it bad. He really liked Hiccup and though he had accepted it, he still hadn’t been ready to admit it openly. Even with Aster knowing since he walked into his house at the “perfect time”, he still wasn’t willing to repeat it to him. Even if he did admit it how the hell would he take the next step? This wasn’t high school and he couldn’t hand him a stupid note that read “Will you be my Boyfriend? Circle ‘Yes’ or ‘No’.”

 

Maybe he could just take it slow and just let whatever happens just…happen. He brushed Hiccup’s bangs out of his face and gently combed his hair with his fingers. His hair was really soft. He tucked a stubborn piece behind his ear and just watched him sleep. If this were any other situation Jack would have thought he was being a bit creepy, and maybe to a point he was, but what else was he supposed to do? He couldn’t reach the remote to the TV and Hiccup obviously didn’t mind him being there or hold hands with him since they had earlier that day. So, Jack didn’t let this bother him.

 

He didn’t want risk waking him by messing with his really soft hair that was asking to be played with so he laid his arm over his friend’s shoulder. He kept their fingers laced and began to gently run the pad of his thumb over Hiccup’s knuckle, just above the bandage, soothingly. He figured if he could keep his friend calm enough to get a good night’s rest than he didn’t mind being a body pillow for Hiccup to snuggle into. He wanted to help him as much as he could, crush or not, he hated seeing him upset, maybe it was the Big Brother in him, but he felt the need to protect him as much as he possibly could.

 

Hiccup was beautiful. A precious gem and he never wanted to see him shatter or damaged. He wanted to be there for him in any way he could. He knew that he hadn’t known him long and he had fallen for him pretty fast, but even if they remained friends and nothing more, he wanted to be near him. Jack pulled Hiccup closer to him and placed a small peck on the top of his head. He could feel Hiccup stir a little and he began tracing small designs lightly against his back and shoulders to calm him.

 

His fingers began fan out as his fingertips rubs to the middle of his back and over Hiccup’s ribcage, feeling all the contours of his back and side, earning a mumbled noise from his friend. Jack gave a small smile before returning his hand to Hiccup’s lean shoulder where it remain, not to disturb his friend more.

 

Yeah, he could definitely get used to this.

 


End file.
